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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Carolyn Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Carolyn Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carolyn Harris on 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what research his Department is undertaking on the use and effects of psychoactive substances on the prison estate.

    Andrew Selous

    We do not tolerate drugs in prison. There is a wide-ranging programme of work being undertaken by NOMS and its partners to better understand and to tackle the use of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS), which have a particularly destructive effect in prisons.

    In April we will introduce widespread drug testing of prisoners for NPS, we are training sniffer dogs to detect NPS, and we are also working with Health partners and others to provide appropriate information, guidance and support to offenders and those working with them in prison. We have a comprehensive range of security measures in place to detect drugs, and to prevent smuggling into prisons.

  • Antoinette Sandbach – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Antoinette Sandbach – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Antoinette Sandbach on 2016-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the reasons were for the delay in announcing the route of phase 2B of High Speed 2 to Manchester and Leeds.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    HS2 Ltd and the Department for Transport have been analysing route and station options in light of the responses received following the Phase Two consultation.

    We have also been considering Sir David Higgins’ proposals to bring forward the benefits of HS2 to the North with a new Crewe Hub station, improve connectivity between Northern cities, and further integrate with Network Rail’s Strategic Business Plan, before deciding how to proceed.

    HS2 Phase Two remains on target to open in 2033.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-05-24.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what the process is for ensuring that quick decisions are made about the treatment of critically ill infants suffering from hypophosphatasia in cases where effective drug treatment is available.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    National Health Service commissioners are legally required to fund drugs and treatments recommended in National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Highly Specialised Technologies evaluations. If the drug is not recommended, and until NICE’s final guidance is issued, it would be for NHS England to decide whether to make it available to patients.

    NICE is currently evaluating asfotase alfa (brand name Strensiq) for the treatment of paediatric-onset hypophosphatasia under its Highly Specialised Technologies programme, which looks at drugs for very small patient populations.

    The Evaluation Committee’s preliminary recommendation, published in December 2015 for consultation, was not to recommended asfotase alfa, within its marketing authorisation, for long-term enzyme replacement therapy in paediatric-onset hypophosphatasia to treat the bone manifestations of the disease.

    NICE makes its recommendations based on the available evidence and in consultation with stakeholders, including manufacturers and patient groups.

    This is not NICE’s final guidance and its recommendations may change after consultation. NICE currently expects to publish its final guidance to the NHS in October 2016.

  • Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what grants for what purpose his Department is making to the National Childbirth Trust in 2016.

    David Mowat

    The Department awarded the National Childbirth Trust (NCT) an Innovation Excellence and Strategic Development Grant in 2015-16 under the Innovation strand.

    The grant is funding a Perinatal Mental health project. The main aims of the NCT project are, to promote positive maternal mental health and support engagement with specialist services for women experiencing perinatal mental illness.

  • Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many level 2 apprenticeships have been available in her Department in each year since 2010; how many such apprenticeships were completed in full; and how many such apprentices subsequently progressed to level 3 or above.

    Robert Halfon

    The table below shows numbers of apprentices in the Department for Education in each financial year since 2009/10.

    Financial Year

    Number of Apprentices in DfE

    Level

    2009/2010

    19

    All Level 3

    2010/2011

    12

    all Levels 2 and 3

    2011/2012

    0

    2012/2013

    32

    all Levels 2 and 3

    2013/2014

    15

    all Level 4

    2014/2015

    34

    20 Level 4 14 Levels 2 and 3

    2015/16

    64

    48 Level 4 16 Levels 2 and 3

    The Level 4 apprentices were all from the Civil Service Fast-track apprenticeship scheme, which lasts at least two years. The Level 2 and Level 3 apprentices were recruited directly by the Department.

    The Department does not hold information about progression between levels or numbers completing apprenticeships.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2015-11-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the value of stationery that has been (a) lost and (b) stolen from his Department in each of the last five fiscal years; and what the cost was of replacing such stationery.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The department does not hold record of this

  • Paul Monaghan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Paul Monaghan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Monaghan on 2015-11-27.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what correspondence the Government has had with Lloyds TSB on implementation of the Access to Banking Protocol and the (a) closure of branches and (b) reduction of banking services in the Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross constituency.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Government welcomed the industry-wide Access to Banking protocol announced in March 2015. From the first of May this year, each participating bank has committed to carry out a number of steps if it is closing a branch. This includes establishing the impact of a branch closure before it takes place; finding suitable alternative provision; and putting in place suitable alternative measures before a branch is closed.

    There is a commitment to review the operation of the protocol after one year. In August, the Minister for Small Business, Industry and Enterprise and I wrote to the Chief Executive of the British Bankers’ Association and requested an update on progress towards the appointment of an independent reviewer. A copy of the letter was also sent to the Chief Executives of the banks that are signatories to the Access to Banking protocol.

    Banks and building societies need to balance customer interests, market competition, and other commercial factors when considering their strategy.

    Decisions on the opening and closing of individual bank branches are taken by the management of each bank on a commercial basis without intervention from Government.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions his Department has had with UK airlines on passing reductions in fuel costs on to passengers.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Government has regular discussions with the industry on a range of issues, and will continue to press for a fair deal for the travelling public.

    The airline industry is intensely competitive and there is no evidence of any market failure that would prevent cost savings being passed onto customers.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether marketing standards conformity certificates issued by Israel covering consignments of fresh fruit and vegetables grown in the occupied Palestinian territories indicate that the products they cover originate in Israel.

    George Eustice

    The Horticultural Marketing Inspectors have no reason to believe that these certificates do not contain correct information. In 2012, the European Commission announced that their research into Israeli/Palestinian export certificates “did not reveal any evidence of non-conformity regarding the indication of the country of origin”. The Commission also reaffirmed the requirement that the origin needed to be clearly indicated whether it was Israel or an Occupied Territory.

  • Diane Abbott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Diane Abbott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diane Abbott on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential effect of the change in the OECD definition of foreign aid to include some military spending on the effectiveness of aid spend on reducing poverty.

    Justine Greening

    We welcome the outcome of the recent High Level Meeting of the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC), which agreed how the Official Development Assistance (ODA) rules should be updated to better tackle the pressing global development issues of the 21st century. The updates to the ODA rules both better recognise the detrimental impact that conflict, fragility and insecurity have on efforts to tackle poverty and reflect the importance of private sector investment for development.