Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of new nursery staff in (a) Burnley and (b) Lancashire who will be affected by the new requirements for staff taking a Level 3 in childcare.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    The requirements have been in effect since 2014 for individuals taking the level 3 Early Years Educator qualifications.

    The requirement for level 3 Early Years Educator staff to hold a GCSE Maths and English at grade C or above was introduced to make sure that new entrants to the workforce have the numeracy and literacy skills they need to operate in a level 3 role. Staff working in level 3 roles can have a range of responsibilities, all of which require them to be highly skilled and well-qualified. Level 3 staff are likely to work directly with children, and many will have additional responsibility as room leaders and some will lead and manage an entire childcare setting.

    The department holds national data on level 3 staff in the early years sector. We know excellent progress has been made over the past few years in which qualification levels have continued to rise. Between 2008 and 2013, the proportion of the 233,200 full day care staff with at least a level 3 qualification grew from 75% to 87%[1]. We are continuing to collect data on level 3 staff through the Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey this year, and will collect data from 2016 in the Early Years Census.

    We have been talking to childcare employers and training organisations about early years qualifications. We want to continue to work with the sector to understand the challenges faced, and find ways to tackle these whilst ensuring a quality workforce remains.

    [1] Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey 2013

  • Virendra Sharma – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Virendra Sharma – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Virendra Sharma on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of NHS blood donation services.

    Jane Ellison

    NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is operationally responsible for providing a safe and reliable supply of blood, blood products and expertise to hospitals in England. Each year, donors voluntarily give around 1.7 million units of blood to ensure that hospitals receive the 6,000 blood donations they need every day, to treat patients. There has not been a shortage of blood for many years.

    NHSBT recruits around 200,000 new donors each year to replace those who can no longer donate for reasons such as ill health, pregnancy or foreign travel.

    To meet an on-going overall drop in demand but a more complex need for specific blood groups, NHSBT is increasing donation from O negative blood donors, A negative platelet donors and donors from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities. To increase blood donation, NHSBT recently launched a BAME toolkit to be used by Members of Parliament seeking to increase blood and organ donors in their constituencies.

    The toolkit can be found at:

    https://www.dropbox.com/sh/i5d5f93ppiqys38/AAB_Q44nwfOiRFMYUx9qKlH8a?dl=0

    “

  • Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance is provided to jobcentre advisers on imposing sanctions on benefit claimants with diabetes.

    Damian Hinds

    There is no specific guidance available to Jobcentre Plus staff on imposing sanctions on benefit claimants with diabetes. There is guidance available to Jobcentre Plus staff on the application of sanctions imposed by a Decision Maker if a claimant fails to fulfil all of their responsibilities as a claimant.

    When Decision Makers make their decisions they do so using guidance for decision makers taking into account all the claimants individual circumstances including health conditions. These circumstances determine whether or not a claimant should be sanctioned.

  • Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Chalk on 2016-10-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to ensure that the UK intellectual property practitioners will continue to have the right to file European Trade Mark and design applications and appear on behalf of clients at the EU Intellectual Property Office after the UK leaves the EU.

    Joseph Johnson

    We have sought UK intellectual property practitioners’ views on the effects of the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union and we are aware that this is a concern to them. We are continuing to engage with practitioners and businesses and are actively considering the options available.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with manufacturers of drugs for the treatment of AIDS on preventing rises in the prices of such drugs.

    George Freeman

    There have been no such representations or discussions. The prices of branded medicines are controlled by the 2014 Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme or under the statutory scheme established under the Health Service Branded Medicines (Control of Prices and Supply of Information) (No.2) Regulations 2008 and the Health Service Medicines (Information Relating to Sales of Branded Medicines etc.) Regulations 2007.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of vacancies in each region and nation of the UK which were advertised on Universal Jobmatch in the most recent month for which figures are available were for part-time jobs.

    Priti Patel

    Official statistics on Universal Jobmatch (UJ) vacancies by region and type of job are not available. This reflects that UJ is an online aggregator of job adverts, and adverts can be posted on the system from more than one source.

    Real-time information on Universal Jobmatch is available at https://jobsearch.direct.gov.uk/register.aspx?redirect=http%3a%2f%2fjobsearch.direct.gov.uk%2fhome.aspx.

    “

  • Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Robinson on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much of the Armed Forces Covenant has been enacted in Northern Ireland.

    Mark Lancaster

    Since the launch of the Armed Forces Covenant in 2011 the Ministry of Defence has worked closely with Northern Ireland Government Departments, Service charities and other groups to build on existing measures to support the Armed Forces Community. In 2013, the Select Committee on Northern Ireland Affairs reported that, less some specific areas, Covenant measures were being applied in Northern Ireland.

    I acknowledge that the Armed Forces Covenant does not enjoy the same level of awareness or appreciation in Northern Ireland as in other parts of the UK. However, I am clear that every effort is being made to implement the Covenant against the particular nuances of the Northern Irish political and legal environment. The Ministry of Defence and other parties work tirelessly to ensure good relationships help develop improved understanding of specific needs and I have been impressed by the way in which solutions to these needs are generated in a focussed and professional manner. Such provision is fully commensurate with the aims and objectives of the Covenant, whether it is branded as such or not.

    Service personnel in Northern Ireland are well-catered for under the auspices of the Covenant and are at no particular disadvantage, although more work is needed to identify the needs of those within the veterans community. This work is ongoing, well-resourced, and fully recognised as activity provided within the scope of the Armed Forces Covenant.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-02-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government has taken to reduce plastic waste; and what assessment she has made of the contribution of the circular economy to reducing that waste.

    Rory Stewart

    The Government has taken a number of steps to reduce plastic waste.

    These include the introduction of a 5p charge on single use carrier bags, which is expected to deliver a reduction of 70-80% in bag usage.

    The UK Producer Responsibility (Packaging Waste) Regulations require producers of packaging to ensure that a proportion of the packaging they handle is recovered and recycled. As recycling targets become more challenging, the incentive on businesses to minimise the packaging they use increases.

    We encourage packaging producers to use a minimum level of packaging through the implementation of the Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations which require that packaging should not exceed what is needed to ensure that products are safe, hygienic and acceptable to the consumer.

    The third phase of the Courtauld Commitment aims to further optimise packaging, reduce packaging waste and improve recyclability. It aims to deliver a 3% relative reduction to the amount of packaging generated by signatories.

    Working through the Waste and Resources Action Programme we have developed and delivered a number of activities in support of both the use of recycled materials in new products, and on activities to stimulate its demand.

    For example, the Plastics Industry Recycling Action Plan has identified key actions that need to take place across the whole supply chain to ensure that recycling plastics packaging can be done sustainably. This includes design for recyclability, collections and sorting, reprocessing and development of sustainable end markets.

    Developing and securing sustainable end markets for recycled materials is key to delivering a circular economy.

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-02-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many civil law suits have been brought against her Department based either wholly or partially on grounds provided by the Human Rights Act 1998; how many such suits were settled out of court before a court judgment was delivered; and how much such settlements have cost the public purse since 2010.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    None.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to degrade and destroy Boko Haram in Nigeria.

    James Duddridge

    The United Kingdom is providing a substantial and increasing package of United Kingdom military, intelligence, development and humanitarian support to help Nigeria and the region tackle Boko Haram. This includes training and advice to Nigerian military units deployed against Boko Haram and £5 million to support the Multinational Joint Taskforce. We are also providing £32 million in humanitarian support over the next three years to the estimated seven million people affected by the conflict in north east Nigeria.

    The Nigerian government will host a high-level Regional Security Summit in Abuja in May. This will bring together regional leaders and international partners, including the United Kingdom, to reaffirm their shared commitment to the fight against Boko Haram.