Tag: Parliamentary Question

Chris Leslie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Leslie on 2013-11-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many overseas trips, and at what total cost, his Department has made in each year since 2010; and what the costs of (a) flights, (b) internal travel, (c) hotel accommodation and (d) subsistence were of each trip.

Brandon Lewis

Role of the Department

Reflecting our responsibilities for local government, housing, planning and communities across England, the work of the Department involves staff travelling to different parts of the country.

Improved procurement has reduced our average domestic hotel rate in the UK by 8% between 2009-10 and 2012-13. Moreover, domestic flights for longer journeys can avoid the need for paying for staff to stay in a hotel overnight.

Since 2011-12, the Department accepted responsibility for some new functions outside of London, including residual functions following the closure of the Government Offices for the Regions and then oversight of the European Regional Development Fund following the abolition of the Regional Development Agencies. As these business functions relate to work in areas outside of London and to the European Commission, this has therefore increased our travel spend compared to the base of 2010-11. However, this is far more than offset by the very significant savings to taxpayers of the abolition of these regional bodies.

Based on current estimates (which reflect accounting consequences from machinery of government changes) the DCLG Group is reducing its annual running costs by around 40% in real terms between 2010-11 and 2014-15. This equates to net savings of at least £532 million over this spending review period and includes savings of around £420 million from the closure of the Government Offices for the Regions.

In addition to this, I note that the Regional Development Agencies were spending in the region of £246 million a year on administration (as cited in 11 March 2009, Official Report, Column 592W).

Spending data

The tables below list spending on travel by financial year. Figures for 2009-10 are from July 2009, as this is when the department’s current approved travel agent contract commenced; those figures are therefore only for three-quarters of the financial year, and the full year is likely to be proportionately higher.

	Overseas Travel	Overseas Accommodation	Overseas Subsistence	Total
July 2009 – March 10	£408,621	£19,847	£79,574	£508,042 (part-year)
2010-11	£56,304	£21,759	£27,798	£105,861
2011-12	£69,463	£21,204	£19,946	£110,613
2012-13	£78,474	£29,224	£21,911	£129,609

	UK Travel	UK Accommodation	UK Subsistence	Total
July 2009 – March 10	£621,028	£309,260	£174,888	£1,105,176 (part-year)
2010-11	£434,467	£199,563	£81,315	£715,345
2011-12	£980,307	£162,544	£71,913	£1,214,764
2012-13	£1,030,710	£166,149	£74,424	£1,271,283

Explanatory notes:

– Overseas subsistence costs can include accommodation, meals and travel tickets purchased locally.

– The costs of internal travel abroad are not routinely recorded in the form requested and this information could only be provided at a disproportionate cost.

– Data on cost per trip is not centrally held in the form requested.

– For car hire, the data from our finance systems do not separate out expenditure for domestic and international car hire and this could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

– For helicopter hire, our records show that the Department has incurred no expenditure on this since 2010-11.

– Figures contained in this answer may differ from previous answers to Parliamentary Questions, as the data extracts have been re-run and reflect ongoing accruals and data. Delays in billing or crediting transactions can sometimes have an effect on the spend data between the financial years.

Taken in the whole, we have reduced overall travel spending compared to the last Administration, and delivered substantive savings for taxpayers’ from the abolition of regional government in England.

December 1, 2022

Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the skills gap in Cumbria.

Nick Boles

It is not for central government to assess local skills needs. Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) are working in collaboration with local authorities, colleges and providers in the area to jointly agree key local skill needs and develop a local skills offer that is responsive to local labour market conditions and contributes to improving our productivity.

Cumbria LEP and the Cumbria Employment and Skills Commission are currently refreshing the area skills strategy and this will be finalised in December 2015. It will include a review of the skills needs of the four key sectors denoted in the Cumbria Strategic Economic Plan: Nuclear and Energy; Advanced Manufacturing; Rural and Visitor Economy; and, Infrastructure Improvements. The Skills Commission has noted that the future skills needs of the nuclear sector and BAE Systems Submarine will create significant pressure for skilled labour, particularly in advanced manufacturing and engineering. This will create displacement challenges in other manufacturing businesses in the area.

In September the government announced a programme of area reviews, which will be locally led and will involve key stakeholders. They will be based on the best available evidence of skills requirements and establish a local post-16 education and training offer which is high quality and responsive to employer need. The reviews will support local involvement in the ongoing commissioning of provision, putting responsibility in the hands of people who are best placed to tailor provision to local economic needs. Cumbria will be included in the area review process, due to be completed by March 2017 and an announcement on the date for the review will be announced in due course.

December 1, 2022
Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Government plans to publish the socio-economic status of entrants to the Senior Civil Service, Fast Stream and Fast Track Apprentice Scheme.

Matthew Hancock

To govern modern Britain, the Civil Service needs to look and sound likemodern Britain. We need access to the broadest possible pool of talent, drawing on peoplefrom all backgrounds and all parts of the country.

The Civil Service is implementing a number of initiatives to recruit individuals from lower socio-economic backgrounds onto the Fast Stream and Fast Track Apprenticeship schemes, including internship programmes, schools and colleges mentoring and discovery days, work experience programmes and engagement with universities with a high representation of lower socio-economic students.

Information on the socio-economic status of recent appointees to the SCS was published in 2014,and the socio-economic status of Fast-Stream applicants has been published since 2011.

In 2015 16.8% of new joiners to the Fast Track Apprenticeship Scheme were from lower socio-economic backgrounds, up from 8.5% in 2013/14. From 2015 this data will be published as part of the Fast Stream applicants publication.

December 1, 2022
Catherine West – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of mandatory electrical safety checks for dwellings in the private rented sector.

Brandon Lewis

Landlords are already under a general legal duty to ensure that electrical installations in the property are safe and kept in good working order. The Government published the How to Rent guide which recommends that electrical installations are checked every 5 years. The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors’ Code of Practice on the letting and management of property makes clear that landlords must repair and keep in proper working order installations for the supply of electricity. In addition, local authorities already have strong powers to deal with unsafe property conditions and we expect them to be used.

The Government believes that the current regulatory framework, which puts a duty on landlords to ensure electrical installations in the property are safe, provides an adequate level of protection. We do not, therefore, have any plans to introduce a requirement for regular checks. However, we will keep the situation under review.

December 1, 2022
Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to support the mental health of armed forces veterans; and how much funding his Department allocated to that purpose in (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2015-16.

Mark Lancaster

The provision of veterans healthcare, including mental healthcare, is primarily the responsibility of the National Health Service in England and the Devolved Administrations who work in close partnership with the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and service charities to ensure that veterans get the best possible care.

The MOD is determined to ensure that veterans who require help are provided with appropriate support including through the Veterans UK helpline; Veterans Welfare Service (VWS) and the Veterans and Reserves Mental Health Programme (VRMHP) which provides mental health assessments for veterans with operational Service since 1982. For these services it is not possible to disaggregate specific costs incurred in support of veterans’ mental health from wider budgets.

In addition to the support outlined above, MOD funding is provided for remedial treatment at Combat Stress homes for war pensioners with service related mental illnesses caused before 6 April 2005. In Financial Year (FY) 2014-15 the MOD spent almost £690,000 on this treatment and for FY 2015-16 we have allocated some £665,000.

NHS England spends £1.8 million per year on mental health services for veterans, including 10 veterans’ mental health teams. Up to a further £18 million of NHS England funding is in place to provide the Combat Stress six-week intensive post-traumatic stress disorder programme for veterans, and an additional £2 million of LIBOR funding is being provided to Combat Stress to help veterans with alcohol problems, which can be indicative of underlying mental health issues. Help for Heroes has received £2 million of LIBOR funding for its "hidden wounds" work which offers low-level improving access to psychological therapies services to veterans.

Subject to the forthcoming spending review, a further £8.4 million of Government funding will be provided over the next five years to help the most vulnerable veterans who have mental health problems.

December 1, 2022
Adam Afriyie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Adam Afriyie on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether her Department (a) has conducted and (b) plans to conduct any research into alternative customer engagement tools to In Home Displays.

Andrea Leadsom

In 2011 the Energy Demand Research Project reported on a series of Government-supported supplier-led trials covering a range of feedback mechanisms from over 50,000 GB houses. These included but were not limited to In Home Displays with research into energy efficiency advice, benchmarking, billing, financial incentives and digital media (e.g. web and television). The findings showed that electricity savings with an In Home Display were generally 2-4% higher than with a smart meter only.

More recently, the Department has consulted on enabling suppliers to undertake controlled trials of innovative In Home Display alternatives when they install a compliant smart metering system. We are currently considering responses ahead of publishing decisions.

December 1, 2022
Stephen Hammond – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Hammond on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to prepare for the implementation of the proposed General Data Protection Regulation; which non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) and agencies overseen by his Department will be affected by that regulation; and what estimate he has made of the potential liability of his Department, its agencies and NDPBs in connection with that proposed regulation.

Mr David Lidington

Negotiations on the proposed General Data Protection Regulation are ongoing. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is closely involved in work led by the Department for Culture, Media & Sport to consider the implications of the text and to ensure that UK interests are reflected. Once the outcome of trilogue negotiations between the Council of the European Union, the European Parliament and the Commission are complete, and the Regulation has been adopted, the liabilities will be further assessed. There will then follow a maximum implementation period of two years. We will also be considering the impact on our Executive Agencies (FCO Services and Wilton Park) and our Executive Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) (the British Council, the Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission, the Great Britain China Centre and the Westminster Foundation for Democracy), all of which will affected by the Regulation.

December 1, 2022
Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 16 October 2015 to Question 11184, on China: nuclear power, if she will publish details of the arrangements for managing the relationship between Chinese National Nuclear Corporation, the Office for Nuclear Regulation and the UK security services.

Andrea Leadsom

Security in the civil nuclear sector is a top priority for the Government.

The Office for Nuclear Regulation is an independent regulator which regulates security in the civil nuclear industry including in relation to new nuclear build in the UK.

The security services and other Government bodies have a role in protecting key infrastructure, including the civil nuclear sector. There is a longstanding convention of successive Governments not commenting in detail on security and intelligence matters.

December 1, 2022
Andrew Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Smith on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of the potential of minimum unit pricing of 50 pence per unit of alcohol to improve liver disease health outcomes in England.

Jane Ellison

The 2015-16 remit letter from the Department of Health asked Public Health England to review the evidence and provide advice on the public health impacts of alcohol and possible evidence-based solutions.

December 1, 2022
Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many NHS (a) doctors and (b) nurses have been signed off work due to (i) stress and (ii) other mental illness in each of the last five years.

Ben Gummer

The Department does not collect centrally data on how many doctors and nurses have been signed off work due to stress and other mental illness.

Employers across the National Health Service are responsible for reducing staff absences due to stress and mental illness through local sickness absence policies.

NHS England recently launched "A healthy NHS workforce"[1], a commitment in its Five Year Forward View[2] "to ensure the NHS as an employer sets a national example in the support it offers its own staff to stay healthy".

Working with Public Health England and NHS Employers, NHS England aims to improve NHS staff health spearheaded by a group of provider and commissioner organisations. Work will include ensuring board level leadership and engagement as well as line manager training to increase awareness of mental health issues, helping them manage staff in a way which is supportive to health and wellbeing.

The Department continues to commission NHS Employers to help trusts improve staff mental health and wellbeing through advice, guidance and good practice[3].

The launch in July of NHS Employers’ How are you feeling NHS? Toolkit[4] enables staff to talk more openly about their emotional health, helps trusts improve the assessment of the impact emotional wellbeing has on staff and patients and supports action planning to improve staff emotional health and wellbeing.

[1] https://www.england.nhs.uk/2015/09/02/nhs-workplace/

[2] https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/5yfv-web.pdf

[3] http://www.nhsemployers.org/search-results?q=supporting+staff+who+are+experiencing+mental+health+issues

[4] http://www.nhsemployers.org/your-workforce/retain-and-improve/staff-experience/health-work-and-wellbeing/protecting-staff-and-preventing-ill-health/how-are-you-feeling-nhs-toolkit

December 1, 2022