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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Baroness Smith of Basildon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Smith of Basildon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Smith of Basildon on 2016-02-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what advice has been provided this Session for ministers or senior officials in the Department of Health on whether to use secondary legislation or primary legislation for significant legislation.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    There has been no change in approach to the use of primary and secondary legislation since the General Election. Each piece of legislation is approached within the context of the policy and the existing legislative framework. There is no evidence of an increase in the number of statutory instruments laid since 2010 or since the General Election. Briefing produced by the House of Commons Library (CBP 7438) shows that the number of statutory instruments laid before the House of Commons peaked at 1,885 in the 2005-06 session, compared to 1,378 last session and 540 so far this session.

  • Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2016-03-03.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many officials in his Department have policy responsibility for deregulation.

    Matthew Hancock

    A cross cutting team has been established to lead delivery of Governments’ commitment to cut a further £10 billion of red tape over this Parliament. The joint team consists of 53 officials from both Cabinet Office and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

  • Michelle Donelan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Michelle Donelan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michelle Donelan on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to support the provision of medical supplies, water, food and emergency shelter for internally displaced people and children in Yemen.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    The UK is the 4th largest donor to the crisis in Yemen and has more than doubled its humanitarian support over the last year to £85 million for 2015/16. We have so far helped more than 1.3 million Yemenis who have been affected by the conflict with food assistance, medical supplies, water, and emergency shelter, as well as supporting refugees and migrants in Yemen. We work through International Non-Governmental Organisations and United Nations agencies to deliver this assistance, ensuring the response is targeted towards the most vulnerable.

    This funding includes support to the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to provide over 750,000 Internally Displaced People and people affected by the conflict with access to a safe water supply and critical hygiene items. The UK has also provided funds to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), UNICEF and Save the Children to raise awareness of child rights, to monitor and support displaced children and to provide children with food, nutritional support, water and sanitation.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-05-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will bring forward regulations to allow re-sentencing of people serving imprisonment for public protection sentences on defined principles specially enacted by Parliament.

    Dominic Raab

    IPP prisoners are released where the Parole Board is satisfied that they can be safely managed in the community.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-06-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will bring forward regulations to prevent drug manufacturers excessively raising the cost of drugs to the NHS when they are the sole or dominant supplier.

    George Freeman

    The Department is already referring cases to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). To strengthen our work in this area we are considering putting measures in place to routinely and systematically monitor significant price increases of generic medicines and take action where appropriate, including the possible referral of suspected excessive pricing to the CMA, while taking into account the potential impact of any such action on the availability of medicines.

    The CMA is currently conducting a number of investigations into anti-competitive practices in the pharmaceutical industry. It imposed fines totalling £45 million in one case (currently subject to appeal at the Competition Appeal Tribunal), and expects to reach a final decision by late summer in another. It opened two more cases in March and April 2016 in which it expects to decide in late summer whether there are grounds to take each investigation further.

    The CMA is also considering evidence of other potential cases of anti-competitive practices in the sector, and may well open further investigations in the coming months.

    The CMA is independent of Ministers and we cannot interfere in either the substance or the procedures of its decision-making.

  • Hugo Swire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hugo Swire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hugo Swire on 2016-09-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had on putting the Maldives on the agenda of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group for the United Nations General Assembly.

    Alok Sharma

    Ministers and officials are in close contact with international partners about the situation in the Maldives. The Government welcomes the conclusion of April 2016 by the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) that its consideration of the situation in Maldives should continue. We also support its recommendations, in particular the need for the release of political leaders, the widening of space for civil society to operate in, and a swift implementation of reforms to strengthen separation of powers and independence of the judiciary in the Maldives. At its meeting in September, we hope CMAG will take firm action in line with its mandate to deal with persistent and serious violations of Commonwealth values.

  • Steve McCabe – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Steve McCabe – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what powers local authorities have to restrict the growth of e-cigarette outlets.

    Jane Ellison

    The Department is not aware of any local authority powers to restrict retailers from selling e-cigarettes. From October, it became an offence in England and Wales to sell e-cigarettes to under-18s and for an adult to purchase an e-cigarette on their behalf. Scotland introduced a Bill in June 2015 which includes similar provisions. Northern Ireland is seeking to bring forward similar legislation within their jurisdiction.

  • Lord Shipley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Lord Shipley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Shipley on 2015-12-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the total number of new homes that will be completed in the UK between May 2015 and May 2020.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    My Department does not publish forecasts of net additions.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will hold discussions with train operators on making the process of purchasing railway tickets from ticket machines simpler in respect of (a) indicating peak and off-peak times, (b) where peak and off-peak times differs between train operators and (c) in other ways.

    Claire Perry

    I recognise that ticket vending machines can sometimes be confusing and do not always make it easy for passengers to find the best ticket for their journey.For that reason, I challenged the rail industry at a Summit I held in December 2014 to improve the information they provide through ticket vending machines.The industry has responded by agreeing with the Office of Rail and Road a code of practice on retail information, published in March 2015, and most train operators now have actions underway or complete, which include providing new messages on screens to explain time restrictions and improving the availability of off-peak tickets through vending machines. The Department continues to monitor progress closely in this area.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the amount of financial penalties was for non-compliance with national minimum wage (a) imposed on and (b) paid by each of the 92 employers who were named and shamed by his Department for such non-compliance on 5 February 2015.

    Nick Boles

    We do not publish details of penalties in individual cases. The employers named in the February 5th round were issued with a combined total of over £629,000 in penalties. To date, 84 of the 92 employers have paid penalties. The remaining 8 are being pursued by HM Revenue and Customs compliance officers.