Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Seema Malhotra – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Seema Malhotra – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Seema Malhotra on 2016-03-23.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 2.228 of Budget 2016, on what date he plans to close the Money Advice Service.

    Harriett Baldwin

    At Budget 2016, the government published its response to the Public Financial Guidance Review and launched a consultation seeking views on the government’s plans to restructure the statutory financial guidance providers – the Money Advice Service, The Pensions Advisory Service and Pension Wise. This paper, which closes on 8 June 2016, sets out a new delivery model for public financial guidance and seeks views on how, within this model, the proposed services could best be offered. The new delivery model is designed to better complement the financial guidance provided by the third sector and the industry and provide more targeted support for consumers.

    The government will consider the responses to this consultation over the summer, and in parallel, work closely with the affected organisations to finalise the delivery structure. A detailed timetable will be set out with the final response, which will be published in the autumn. The government has been clear that the three affected organisations will continue to provide guidance to consumers until at least 2018.

  • Lord Patten – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Patten – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Patten on 2016-05-04.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many single line tracks there are on passenger lines within a 120 mile radius of all London rail stations; and what they are.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    This is an operational matter for Network Rail and London Underground.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-06-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 24 May 2016 to Question 37683, on child maintenance arrears, on how many occasions his Department has used each of the enforcement powers referred to in that Answer in each of the last five years.

    Priti Patel

    For the 1993 and 2003 Schemes the information you requested is set out on Page 40 of the Child Support Agency quarterly summary of statistics which can be accessed online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-support-agency-quarterly-summary-of-statistics-march-2016

    Information on enforcement for the 2012 scheme could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

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  • Sue Hayman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Sue Hayman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sue Hayman on 2016-09-05.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans his Department has to ensure that the LEADER and Countryside Stewardship schemes continue to be funded when the UK leaves the EU.

    Mr David Gauke

    The funds mentioned are covered under the Chancellor’s recent announcement on EU funding, available at this link: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/chancellor-philip-hammond-guarantees-eu-funding-beyond-date-uk-leaves-the-eu

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  • Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne Main on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the size of increase in demand of the ambulance service in the East of England in the last 12 months; and whether his Department plans to take steps to meet that demand.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    NHS Improvement (NHSI) is responsible for overseeing National Health Service trusts. NHSI advises that East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust’s (EEAST’s) performance has seen a sustained improvement since March 2016. However, the Trust is still not meeting the national standards for category A (immediately life-threatening) calls. In August 2016, it responded to 68.9% of Red 1 calls and 62.3% of Red 2 calls within eight minutes, against a standard of 75%. For all category A calls, it responded to 90.8% within 19 minutes, against a standard of 95%.

    NHSI advises that overall demand on the Trust’s services has increased by 4.6% over the last 12 months, although the higher acuity ‘Red’ demand has increased by approximately 15%. This substantial increase in high acuity demand represents thousands more calls needing a response against the eight-minute standard. In 2016/17, to the end of August 2016, the Trust had responded to 3,699 more high acuity patients (Red 1 and Red 2 calls) in eight minutes than in the same period in 2015/16.

    NHSI advises that staff turnover at EEAST has been steadily reducing over the last eight months. Turnover of EEAST frontline staff for the period 1 August 2015 to 30 September 2016 was 7.12%. The Trust’s reference period for reporting staff turnover is 1 January 2015 to 31 December 2015, and within this period turnover was 8.31%. Based on the most recent national benchmarking data for June 2016, turnover for all staff at EEAST was 9.85%, fifth lowest of the 11 English ambulance trusts.

  • Angela Rayner – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Angela Rayner – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angela Rayner on 2015-11-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what role he plans for Rail North in (a) assessing bids for the Northern and TransPennine Express rail franchises and (b) drafting the agreements for those franchises.

    Andrew Jones

    The Department for Transport (DfT) has been working with Rail North throughout the process to renew the Northern and TransPennine Express franchises. As well as their active involvement during the development of the franchise specifications and public consultation, Rail North staff have also been part of the DfT teams evaluating the bids and have commented on key parts of the draft Franchise Agreements.

  • Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-01-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to planned changes to the housing benefit cap announced in the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, what assessment he has made of the effect of that cap on (a) domestic violence refuges and (b) other supported accommodation.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The introduction of Local Housing Allowance limits to social sector tenants in receipt of Housing Benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit will only apply from April 2018 where new tenancies have been taken out or renewed after April 2016.

    The Department is working on the exact policy design details for tenants in supported accommodation which includes domestic violence refuges.

  • Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Monaghan on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to provide alternatives to criminalization and incarceration of people with drug-use disorders and to encourage alternatives to imprisonment facilitating the eventual rehabilitation, re-skilling and reintegration of drug users.

    Andrew Selous

    We are currently trialling ‘Liaison and Diversion’ services. These services place health professionals at police stations and courts to assess suspects for a range of health problems, including drug misuse, and make referrals to treatment and support. Information shared with the criminal justice system can be used to inform decisions, supporting diversion into treatment as part of an alternative to charge or to custody where appropriate.

    We are also interested in problem-solving courts, such as drug courts, given evidence of success in other jurisdictions. Officials are now working with members of the judiciary to consider how the problem-solving approach might be developed for England and Wales.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-02-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to ensure that the Government meets its commitment that all patients throughout England with musculoskeletal conditions have the support they need to live healthily and independently, with better control over the care they receive, notwithstanding reductions in public health budgets.

    Jane Ellison

    Since 1 April 2013, the Government has set out high level strategic ambitions for the National Health Service through the Mandate. For patients with long term conditions (LTCs), including musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions, we have asked the NHS to improve the care and support of patients, helping them to live healthily and independently, with much better control over the care they receive.

    In response, NHS England has set out a range of actions designed to deliver this, central to which was implementation of the House of Care model, which is designed to support the delivery of person-centred, coordinated care. The House of Care enables individuals to make informed decisions about their treatment and empowers them to self-manage their LTCs in partnership with health and care professionals. NHS England has provided data, tools and guidance to support local services in identifying those most likely to benefit from a care planning approach. Specifically on MSK conditions, the National Clinical Director for MSK, Peter Kay, has been working in partnership with the Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance, to develop new MSK clinical networks across England to build consensus on the way forward for models of care.

    In terms of assessment, the first annual report of the National Clinical Audit of Rheumatoid and Early Inflammatory Arthritis, commissioned on behalf of NHS England by the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership (HQIP), was published on 22 January 2016. This report, which includes data from 1 February 2014 to 30 April 2015, assesses the quality of care by specialist rheumatology services using criteria derived from sources such as the Rheumatoid Arthritis Quality Standard, published by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence in June 2013. The report identifies that although most services offer prompt educational support and agree targets for treatment with their patients, performance against criteria for referral and assessment could be improved. Since the audit, HQIP has reported that a number of trusts have successfully reconfigured their services in order to improve patient care. More information can be found at the following link:

    www.hqip.org.uk/national-programmes/a-z-of-nca/arthritis-rheumatoid-and-early-inflammatory

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  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-03-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of the proposed 3,000 new junior doctors to be recruited to the NHS will be trained in the UK.

    Ben Gummer

    The Department does not recognise the figure cited by the hon. Member.

    Health Education England is responsible for providing leadership for the education and training system. It ensures that the shape and skills of the future health and public health workforce evolve to sustain high quality outcomes for patients in the face of demographic and technological change. Its remit is to ensure that the workforce has the right skills, behaviours and training, and is available in the right numbers to support the delivery of excellent healthcare and drive improvements.