The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Mearns on 2016-06-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether Ofsted inspectors are required to have experience of teaching in primary schools prior to becoming an inspector.
Nick Gibb
This is a matter for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw. I have asked him to write to you and a copy of his reply will be placed in the libraries of the House.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-09-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department’s (a) £10 million payment to the Macfarlane Trust in 1987 and (b) £500,000 payment to the Eileen Trust in 1993 was allocated to his Department’s capital budget or revenue budget.
Nicola Blackwood
The Department does not hold the information requested.
The Department only holds data for the last seven financial years, in accordance with departmental policy for retention of financial data, and the Finance Act 1998 – Schedule 18 Part III, Duty to keep and preserve records.
The government spending control regime has changed many times since the period referred to in the question, however generally payments to charities such as these would score as “grants”. The treatment of a grant as “revenue” or “capital” is explained on page 31 of HM Treasury’s Consolidated Budgeting Guidance 2016-17, which can be found at:
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Turnberg on 2015-11-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what efforts they have made to allow endangered refugees in Camp Liberty to come to the UK.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
In 2011 the Government of Iraq signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the UN Assistance Mission to Iraq which allowed the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to make assessments on applications made by the residents for relocation. The UNHCR assessment process is underway, and a number of residents have now been relocated to third countries.
The UK has re-admitted four individuals from Camp Ashraf who hold valid UK travel documents. The Home Office exceptionally agreed to consider whether 52 residents of Camp Liberty previously settled in the UK, but who left many years ago, should be readmitted. Seventeen residents approved for resettlement in the UK by the Home Office are now in the UK. The UNHCR has also referred 35 further residents and a decision from the Home Office is pending.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Debbie Abrahams on 2015-12-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of the cases groups with a current liability using the 2012 statutory child maintenance scheme in August 2015 were due to pay via (a) the CMS Calculation and Collection Service and (b) Direct Pay.
Priti Patel
As at August 2015, 30% of cases paid via the CMS Calculation and Collection Service and 70% of cases paid via Direct Pay.
Information on Service Type (Case based) is set out on Page 6 of the Child Maintenance Service 2012 Scheme Experimental Statistics and Page 8 of the tables which can be accessed online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/2012-statutory-child-maintenance-scheme-aug-2013-to-aug-2015-experimental
Note:
Percentages are rounded to the nearest whole number.
Accurate information by case group could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many fines G4S has paid under any contract with his Department in each of the last five years; and for what reasons each such fine was imposed.
Andrew Selous
The Ministry of Justice holds a number of centrally and locally managed contracts with G4S and information on the total financial remedies imposed could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost. However, the total for G4S run prisons, Young Offender’s Institutes (YOIs) and secure training centres (STC) were as follows:
As I stated in the answer to PQ 22664, there have been two incidents in the last five years in which financial remedies were applied at Medway STC. In both cases, G4S failed to comply with operating procedures. In the same time period, there was one incident for which financial remedies were applied at Rainsbrook STC, for failing to comply with operating procedures.
Financial remedies applied to private prisons, including HMP/YOI Parc since 2010 are set out in the attached table.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vernon Coaker on 2016-02-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if she will make an assessment of the effect of the application of section 133 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 on the payment of compensation relating to cases in Northern Ireland; and if she will make a statement.
Mrs Theresa Villiers
Section 133 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 requires the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland or, in relation to most criminal offences in Northern Ireland, the Department of Justice, to pay compensation where a person’s conviction for a criminal offence has been reversed or he has been pardoned on the grounds that a new or newly discovered fact shows beyond reasonable doubt that there has been a miscarriage of justice. The amount of compensation awarded in these cases is assessed by an independent assessor.
Section 175 of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 inserted subsection (1ZA) into section 133 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988, providing a statutory definition of “miscarriage of justice”. In accordance with this new provision, the Secretary of State will only pay compensation for a “miscarriage of justice” where the new or newly discovered fact (on the basis of which the conviction was reversed) shows beyond reasonable doubt that the person did not commit the offence of which they were convicted. In Northern Ireland this new definition applies in relation to applications for compensation in cases involving sensitive national security information, which applications are determined by the Secretary of State rather than the Northern Ireland Department of Justice.
I believe that this clear definition enshrined in statute makes decisions on eligibility more transparent and less likely to be the subject of legal challenge and ensures (in those cases in Northern Ireland to which it applies) that compensation will only be paid where it is clear the person did not commit the offence of which they were convicted.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-03-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the (a) effectiveness of Flood Re and (b) whether her Department’s long-term strategy fund for flood defences has been distributed fairly.
Rory Stewart
Flood Re began its operational testing phase in July 2015. The Flood Re Board expect to be ready to accept policies from April 2016, once it is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority. Once operational, Flood Re will be accountable directly to Parliament and be reviewed at least every five years.
The allocation of Government Grant in Aid for projects in the long term capital programme uses Defra’s Partnership Funding approach which ensures a fair allocation for projects throughout the country. Funding is potentially available for any project where the benefits of the scheme are greater than the cost and are allocated based on outcomes (economic damages avoided and number of households protected), rather than a percentage of the costs. This approach secures value for money for the taxpayer, ensures that a fair share is available for all projects over time and that flood management is not limited to what central Government alone can afford.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne-Marie Trevelyan on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what instructions his Department has issued to ambassadors and diplomats in relation to the forthcoming referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU.
Mr David Lidington
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is in regular contact with diplomatic posts overseas to ensure they are informed of HM Government’s position, including on the referendum, and are able to promote the United Kingdom’s interests overseas, supporting our citizens and businesses around the globe.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-05-09.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on the UK’s research capacity of the reduction in the number of consultant clinical pharmacologist posts within the NHS.
Lord Prior of Brampton
Figures published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre show that there has not been a reduction in the number of consultant clinical pharmacologists employed in the National Health Service in England.
As part of its workforce planning, Health Education England (HEE) take account of a range of factors including forecast rates of retirement. HEE has recently undertaken a review of the clinical pharmacology and therapeutics workforce, the findings of which will contribute to future workforce planning for this specialty in England.
It is for the respective Governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to consider workforce planning for their health system.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-06-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Democratic Republic of Congo counterpart on ensuring that elections in that country are open and transparent.
James Duddridge
I have repeatedly urged the Foreign Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Raymond Tshibanda, to ensure that elections in his country are open, transparent and are conducted in line with his country’s Constitution. Most recently I wrote to Mr Tshibanda in April this year to follow-up on my meeting with him in the margins of a UN debate on the Great Lakes region held in March 2016. I also met Mr Tshibanda at the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa in January 2016. In all my interactions with representatives of the Congolese Government I have stressed the importance of a peaceful, democratic transition of power in the DRC. My Hon Friend, the Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Nick Hurd MP), Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for International Development), visited the DRC in March 2016.