Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-01-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Mauritania.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We last assessed the human rights situation in Mauritania in November 2015 before Mauritania’s Universal Periodic Review ahead of the UN Human Rights Council. Officials continue to monitor human rights in Mauritania and raise our concerns with the Mauritanian authorities at the highest levels.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-02-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2016 to Question 24113, on what occasions the Government has requested the sending state to waive the rights to diplomatic immunity of an individual diplomat in the UK in the last 12 months.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    We do not disclose the missions from which we have sought waivers of immunity. Doing so would be likely to prejudice relations between the United Kingdom and the States in question. Statistics for the total number of waivers of immunity sought for foreign diplomats in the UK in the last 12 months are not kept centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. Statistics for waivers of immunity sought in cases of serious and significant offences allegedly committed by foreign diplomats in the last 12 months have yet to be compiled. Those allegedly committed in the calendar year 2015 will be available in the next annual Written Ministerial Statements on the failure of foreign missions to comply with UK law in 2015.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he has taken to ensure that any underspend of the budget for Sovereign Base Areas in Cyprus is allocated to projects and schemes on those bases; and what planning his Department has carried out for such a scenario.

    Penny Mordaunt

    There has been no significant underspend in the Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs) in recent years. In the unlikely event an underspend is identified, there are measures in place to identify priorities for additional investment in the SBAs, subject to wider Departmental policies. These measures involve engagement with all key stakeholders at the beginning of each Financial Year to identify ‘quick win’ projects that could be funded and implemented promptly in the event of a potential underspend.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent representations she has received on the potential link between cavity wall insulation and dampness in houses.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Under the Energy Company Obligation, which is the primary government support for measures of this type, the insulation of a cavity wall must be accompanied by an appropriate guarantee, approved by Ofgem. Amongst other criteria, the guarantee must include an assurance framework for the quality of the installation and the product used in the installation. As the administrator of ECO, Ofgem assess the suitability of this framework.

    Alongside this, the Department for Communities and Local Government has begun research into dampness in buildings caused by both internal moisture and wind-driven rain and related to insulation. This project is due for completion later this year. We are also aware of the recent publication of BBA Technical report No. 3, Full fill cavity wall insulation in areas of very severe exposure to wind driven rain.

    The results of both projects, together with any other relevant information, will be considered as part of any review of the regulations and associated statutory guidance. DECC and DCLG have also commissioned Dr Peter Bonfield to conduct a wider independent review of consumer advice, quality and standards and consumer protection for energy efficiency and renewable installations. The findings of this review will cover installations of Cavity Wall insulations. This report will be published in due course.

  • Jeremy Lefroy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Jeremy Lefroy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeremy Lefroy on 2016-05-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many curfew orders have been issued for anti-social behaviour in Stafford constituency since the introduction of such orders.

    Mike Penning

    The Home Office does not hold information on curfew orders issued for anti-social behaviour.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-07-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what research his Department has undertaken or assessed on links between depression and diabetes.

    Nicola Blackwood

    NHS England is undertaking work aimed at supporting people with diabetes who need psychological support: for example, psychological support for children with diabetes is being incentivised through the paediatric diabetes best practice tariff.

    More generally, work has recently been undertaken on treating common mental health disorders for people with long term physical conditions, including diabetes. Based on the findings from this and other published evidence, Implementing the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health outlines NHS England’s ambition that two thirds of the expansion of psychological therapies services for common mental health problems, such as depression, will be integrated within physical health pathways, including diabetes.

  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the findings of the report by CLIC Sargent entitled Cancer Costs: the financial impact of treatment on young cancer patients and their families, published in September 2016, whether he plans to review the financial support available for young cancer patients and their families to help meet the cost of their energy bills.

    Penny Mordaunt

    CLIC Sargent has supplied the Department for Work and Pensions with a copy of the report “Cancer Costs”. We are examining the contents of the report and I have asked my officials to arrange a meeting with CLIC Sargent’s representatives in the near future.

  • Alan Whitehead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Alan Whitehead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2015-11-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will establish an examination of objections to her departmental minute of 21 October 2015 including the entering into contracts regarding the Hinkley Point C power station that could give rise to liabilities.

    Andrea Leadsom

    I will be writing to hon. Members who have signed EDM 619, in which I will respond to the objection. I will deposit a copy of the response in the Libraries of the House.

  • Kevan Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kevan Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2015-12-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Ministry of Defence Police Officers he estimates will be employed by his Department in (a) 2015-16, (b) 2016-17, (c) 2017-18, (d) 2018-19 and (e) 2019-20.

    Mr Julian Brazier

    The number of Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) officers employed by the Ministry of Defence is estimated as follows:

    Financial Year

    2015-16

    2016-17

    2017-18

    2018-19

    2019-20

    MDP Officers

    2,666

    2,631

    2,631

    2,631

    2,631

    Note: Figures are for funded posts and figures for 2016-17 onwards are provisional until the implications of the Strategic Defence and Security Review have been worked through.

  • Oliver Colvile – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Oliver Colvile – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-01-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to simplify and make more accessible the diagnostic pathway in order to improve speed of diagnosis and access to support.

    Jane Ellison

    In September 2015, the NHS England Board approved the development of a personalised medicine strategy for the National Health Service which will be based around four overarching principles: the prediction and prevention of disease; more precise diagnoses; targeted and personalised interventions; and a more participatory role for patients.

    The strategy will build on the 100,000 Genomes Project, which is moving the NHS to a new model of diagnosis and treatment based on the understanding of underlying genetic causes and drivers of disease and a comprehensive phenotypic characterisation of the disease (rather than deduction from symptoms and individual diagnostic tests). Personalised medicine informs the selection of the most appropriate treatment and better outcomes for individual patients – the right drug at the right time, earlier screening and treatment, smarter monitoring and the adjustment of treatments.

    Furthermore, the Independent Cancer Taskforce recognised the need for more accessible molecular diagnostic provision in their report ‘Achieving World-Class Cancer Outcomes’ published in July 2015. In September 2015, the Department confirmed a commitment from NHS England to implement the Taskforce’s recommendations on molecular diagnostics.

    NHS England is currently working with partners across the healthcare system to determine how best to take forward the recommendations of the Taskforce, and has appointed Cally Palmer as National Cancer Director to lead on implementation, as well as new cancer vanguards to redesign care and patient experience.

    She has set up a new Cancer Transformation Board to implement the strategy, and this met for the first time on Monday 25 January 2016. There will also be a Cancer Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Harpal Kumar, to oversee and scrutinise the work of the Transformation Board. Timeframes and phasing for implementation will be dependent on the final financial settlement reached as a result of the spending review.