The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-01-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of what proportion of the difference between the local housing allowance rate and the actual cost of rent and service charge in supported and sheltered housing will be met by discretionary housing payments in (a) Birmingham and (b) England and Wales.
Justin Tomlinson
The information requested is not available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Rotheram on 2016-02-22.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on levels of self-employment in the construction industry of his proposed changes to tax relief for travel and subsistence.
Mr David Gauke
The changes to tax relief for travel and subsistence only affect those who work through an employment intermediary. The Government’s assessment of the effects of the measure can be found in the Tax Information and Impact Note:
Further assessment can be found in the summary of responses to the consultation document published on this change: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/483389/Employment_Intermediaries_and_Tax_Relief_for_Travel_and_Subsistence_-_Summary_of_Responses__M7057_.pdf
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-03-16.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of rough sleepers has mental health issues; and what plans he has to address that issue.
Mr Marcus Jones
No one should ever have to sleep rough. That is why we have increased our central investment for homelessness to £139 million over the next four years, and protected homelessness prevention funding to local authorities, totalling £315 million.
We know sleeping rough is rarely the result of a personal housing crisis alone and that the most entrenched rough sleepers often have complex needs, including mental health difficulties or addiction. That is why we are investing £10 million in an innovative new national Social impact Bonds Fund to help address these complex needs in order to help entrenched rough sleepers move off the streets. Through my Ministerial Working Group on Homelessness, I am working with ministerial colleagues across government including the Department of Health, to develop actions to address these underlying causes of homelessness.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-04-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government to what extent their fiscal strategy is influenced by Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) was established to introduce independence, greater transparency and credibility to the economic and fiscal forecasts on which the government’s fiscal policy is based. Since 2010, the government has used the OBR’s economic and fiscal forecasts as the official forecasts. The government sets its fiscal strategy independently of the OBR but the forecasts are used to inform decisions on fiscal policy.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-05-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of microplastics entering the sea on protected species in UK waters.
George Eustice
Defra has funded a project, undertaken by the University of Plymouth, to study the effects of microplastics in the marine environment. The study did not specifically cover protected species. The project studied whether chemical pollutants stick to plastic particles, whether marine organisms ingest plastic particles and pass them along the food chain, and whether the plastics themselves, or associated chemical pollutants, could cause harm to those organisms. The final report for this project is expected to be published shortly.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cheryl Gillan on 2016-07-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when and where the next community engagement event for High Speed 2 Phase One in Chesham and Amersham constituency will take place.
Mr Robert Goodwill
HS2 Ltd’s most recent engagement with the Amersham and Chesham community took place at the Amersham Town Carnival on Saturday 9th July, and was part of the project’s more localised approach to community engagement. The HS2 stall presented local information on the project, and was attended by around 180 residents from the Amersham / Chesham community.
HS2 Ltd plans to attend similar existing community events across the Phase One route during the summer months, and is also drawing up a schedule of HS2 Ltd run community events, expected to be delivered in the autumn. Amersham and Chesham will be included as part of this exercise. Further details will be made available once the next event is confirmed.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-09-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will make representations to the Kurdistan Region Government about the proposed closing of schools and institutions linked to the Gülen Movement, as a result of discussions between the government of Turkey and that government.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
We are aware of reports that all Gulen schools in the Kurdistan Region will come under the management of the Kurdistan Regional Government ‘s Ministry of Education, although we do not yet fully understand the rationale behind this decision. Officials at our Consulate General in Erbil will discuss this issue with representatives of the Kurdistan Regional Government at the earliest opportunity. Delivering a quality education remains an ongoing challenge for the government of Iraq. Reports suggest that almost one in five schools across Iraq is out of use due to conflict, which has left millions of Iraqi children of school-age outside of the education system. We continue to work with the government of Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government to promote education, particularly through the work of the British Council and our Chevening programme.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what organisations are providers of Community Work Placements under the Help to Work scheme.
Priti Patel
DWP Community Work Placement Prime Providers:
Seetec Business Technology Centre Limited
G4S Regional Management (UK&I) Limited
Advanced Personnel Management Group (UK) Limited
Learndirect Limited
Rehab Jobfit LLP
Working Links (Employment) Limited
Interserve Working Futures Limited
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Caulfield on 2016-01-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with (a) NHS England and (b) Health Education England on the strategic review of the cancer workforce recommended in the report of the Independent Cancer Taskforce.
Jane Ellison
The independent Cancer Taskforce’s five-year strategy for cancer, Achieving World-Class Cancer Outcomes, published in July 2015, recommends improvements across the cancer pathway with the aim of improving survival rates. NHS England has appointed Cally Palmer as NHS National Cancer Director. She will lead on the implementation of the strategy, as well as new cancer vanguards to redesign care and patient experience.
She is currently setting up a new Cancer Transformation Board to lead the roll-out of the recommendations of the new strategy, and a Cancer Advisory Group, chaired by Dr Harpal Kumar, Chief Executive of Cancer Research UK, will oversee and scrutinise their work. Timeframes and phasing for implementation will be dependent on the final financial settlement reached as a result of the spending review.
We announced in September 2015 that Health Education England (HEE) is developing a new national training programme for an additional 200 staff to get the skills and expertise to carry out endoscopies by 2018. The content of the next mandate from the Government to HEE is currently being determined.
A commitment to whole-person care for patients, including those living with and beyond cancer, is embedded throughout the cancer taskforce report. In addition, the cancer vanguards have been established to explore new models of care, with a focus on delivering more person-centred care.
Ensuring the National Health Service is able to support the availability and use of effective treatments and medicines for rare cancers is a key priority. Cancer 52, an organisation which specifically represents patients with rarer cancers, was represented on the independent Cancer Taskforce. The Taskforce’s report made many recommendations relevant to rarer cancers, focussing in particular on improving access to diagnostic testing, including fast, direct general practitioner access to key blood tests, and increasing patient access to the most advanced treatments.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mrs Sharon Hodgson on 2016-01-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will take steps to ensure that attachment theory is understood by teachers across schools in England to help readiness for learning.
Edward Timpson
Attachment issues can impact on educational outcomes, particularly for looked after children and for those children who have left care through adoption. The attachment of these children may have been adversely affected through difficult experiences in their early years.
Every school must have a designated teacher for looked after children who promotes their educational achievement. Every looked after child must also have the support of the local authority’s Virtual School Head. These vulnerable children, including those who have left care, also attract the pupil premium worth £1900 per eligible pupil. Schools may use this funding to purchase training for staff on recognising and responding to attachment related issues.
Stephen Munday is leading an independent group to develop a framework of core Initial Teacher Training content to build a better shared understanding of the essential elements of the training. Although we cannot pre-empt what will be included in the framework, the group will be considering a broad range of course content including special educational needs and disabilities and classroom management, amongst other things. Stephen Munday will report to Ministers in the spring of 2016.