The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diane Abbott on 2016-06-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what PREMs and PROMs data his Department holds for people with (a) sickle cell disease and (b) thalassaemia.
George Freeman
NHS England does not currently routinely collect this information.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2016-09-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps she has taken to protect native tree species.
Dr Thérèse Coffey
Defra is acting to protect native tree species from a range of threats. Current examples include:
it is an offence to fell trees without a licence if an exemption does not apply;
the particular value and irreplaceable nature of ancient woodlands and veteran trees is recognised in the National Planning Policy Framework;
we use the UK Plant Health Risk Register to identify, assess and tackle tree pests and diseases at source (pre-border), at the border and inland, including several that threaten native trees;
support for some landowners on specific tree diseases and measures to support squirrel control through the Countryside Stewardship Scheme;
working with the Squirrel Accord to deliver the December 2014 grey squirrel action plan for England;
Forestry Commission advice on how native woodlands can be adapted to be more resilient to the effects of climate change.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dawn Butler on 2015-11-16.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support her Department is providing to aid agencies and international partners to prepare Syrian refugee camps for winter.
Mr Desmond Swayne
The UK has been at the forefront of the response to the crisis in Syria and the region. We have pledged over £1.1 billion to date, our largest ever response to a single humanitarian crisis. We are the second largest bilateral donor after the US.
DFID is supporting 11 implementing partners to prepare and respond to the onset of winter across Syria, Lebanon and Jordan. This financial year, we have provided £221 million to these 11 partners to support their emergency programmes, of which £12.9 million has been committed for specific winter response activities such as the provision of warm clothing, thermal blankets, fuel and cash to support thousands of vulnerable families across the region.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Empey on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether UK aid is able to enter Nepal by road without interference or delay.
Baroness Verma
We have been closely monitoring the movement of humanitarian and health goods over the land borders to Nepal. A number of DFID partners providing winter assistance for vulnerable households living over 1,500m affected by the earthquake have trucks that have not been able to move freely across the border. Other DFID humanitarian partners have been procuring goods from Nepal but are struggling with their distribution due to shortages of fuel.
We are actively advocating to all parties for the free movement of humanitarian and health supplies and peaceful resolution of the current disruption. The UN Resident Coordinator and the UK Ambassador met with Nepal’s Prime Minister this week to raise the issue of access to fuel for humanitarian operations. This has resulted in a positive commitment to prioritise a supply of fuel to humanitarian partners. UK ministers and senior civil servants continue to raise concerns over the current crises and need for quick resolution with concerned groups.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will take steps to ensure that harbours can accommodate any new vessels built for use by the Royal Navy.
Mr Philip Dunne
It is recognised that harbours in the UK and around the world vary in size, and that not all are able to accommodate all classes of ships due to constraints such as navigation channels, water depth, tidal movements, tug and pilotage arrangements, and berthing facilities. There are, however, a sufficient number of harbours and ports both at home and overseas that our ships can access, or could anchor in the vicinity of, to receive the necessary support.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-02-10.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many firms have been excluded from bidding for Government contracts since the introduction of the procurement policy note, Measures to promote tax compliance published in February 2014.
Matthew Hancock
These new measures on tax compliance, introduced in 2013, enable government departments to exercise their power to exclude firms bidding for government contracts where they have been non-compliant in meeting their legal tax obligations.
The policy is compatible with the existing procurement process and is being updated to clarify the use of mandatory and discretionary exclusion criteria, contained in the new Public Contracts Regulations 2015, concerning tax compliance.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-03-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to the letter to the hon. Member for Denton and Reddish from the Minister for Local Growth and the Northern Powerhouse of 18 February 2016, on accountability of combined authorities, if he will introduce call-in procedures for individual constituent district councils to scrutinise the decisions of combined authorities.
James Wharton
The scrutiny requirements for combined authorities are set out in Schedule 5A to the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009, as inserted by the Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016, which provide that overview and scrutiny committees of combined authorities have powers to call in decisions and to involve other persons in their work. Schedule 5A also provides for secondary legislation which must ensure that the majority of members of an overview and scrutiny committee will be members of the combined authority’s constituent councils and that at least one member of an audit committee is an independent person. The scrutiny requirements of the Local Government Act 2000 do not apply to combined authorities.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-04-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy to maintain the statutory status of all the farm animal welfare codes.
George Eustice
The Government intends to retain statutory farm animal welfare codes.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Paisley on 2016-05-18.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the aim of the Government’s policy on the new soft drinks levy is to persuade manufacturers to stop selling the regular full sugar versions of their drinks products.
Damian Hinds
The aim of the soft drinks industry levy is to help tackle obesity by encouraging producers to reformulate their overall product mixes by reducing added sugar content, helping their customers to choose low-sugar and sugar-free brands, and by reducing the portion sizes for high sugar drinks.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-06-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to ensure that staff in her Department receive religious literacy training.
James Brokenshire
Civil Service Learning, the main training provider for the Home Office, has a broad range of diversity and inclusion learning opportunities which are available to all staff.
Horizon (the Home Office intranet) hosts an information portal with resources to develop staff’s religious literacy.