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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will respond to the Care Quality Commission’s Community Mental Health Survey 2015.

    Alistair Burt

    The Department will not be responding to the Care Quality Commission (CQC)’s Community Mental Health Survey 2015. Surveys of this nature are an important part of the CQC’s role in improving services. We note them and take account of the findings when developing policies for improvement.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which of the recommendations of the report by the Independent Police Complaints Commission on Operation Gullane have been implemented; and what form that implementation has taken.

    Karen Bradley

    The IPCC report on Operation Gullane makes a number of recommendations relating to police investigation of non-recent child sexual abuse.

    Since the publication of those recommendations the Home Office has:

    • prioritised child sexual abuse as a national threat to empower police forces to maximise specialist skills and expertise to prevent offending and resolve cases

    • provided £1.7 million to Operation Hydrant which coordinates the handling of multiple non-recent child sexual abuse investigations specifically concerning institutions

    In addition:

    • the College of Policing has issued updated Authorised Professional Practice guidance for police in relation to child abuse and exploitation, and

    • a joint National Policing Lead and CPS review panel has been established to re-examine non-recent cases of sexual abuse where a decision was made that no further action would be taken and identify whether any issues require further exploration and investigation.

    Combined, these measures significantly improve the quality of police investigations non-recent child sexual abuse.

    I understand that the IPCC will write directly to the Honourable Member regarding implementation of the report’s recommendations.

  • Margaret Ferrier – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Margaret Ferrier – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ferrier on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to increase the number of (a) women and (b) people from ethnic minorities in the police forces.

    Mike Penning

    It is vital that the police reflect the communities they serve and the Government is determined to improve BME representation in all 43 forces in England and Wales.

    Decisions on when and how to recruit individuals are for the chief officer of a police force. It is important that they use equalities legislation, including positive action provisions, to make better progress in terms of recruitment of under-represented groups.

    The Home Secretary announced on 22 October the publication of data showing the gender and ethnicity of police officers by force area. This represents an important step in making it easier for the public to access the data they need to see how representative their force is compared to the local population. It is clear that the current representation of women and officers from minority ethnic backgrounds in the officer ranks is not good enough and the Home Secretary has challenged forces to do more.

    The Government’s reforms have already made improvements, for example we set up the College of Policing which has embarked on a major programme of work, BME Progression 2018, looking at recruitment, retention and progression of black and minority ethnic officers, including the development of an evidence base of successful approaches used by forces.

    We have worked with the College to develop its Reverse Mentoring programme, which seeks to give police leaders an insight into the direct lived experience of officers from under-represented groups. I am grateful to the five Chief Constables who have signed their force up to the programme. We also worked with the College to produce its Positive Action Practical Advice, which advises forces on the use of lawful positive action to support the recruitment, retention and progression of officers from under-represented groups.

    Under this Government innovative schemes such as Direct Entry and Police Now are increasing the number of BME recruits to the police, showing that you can achieve better representation whilst attracting the best and the brightest into policing.

    Of the nine direct entry superintendents who began their superintendent training on November 2014 four (44%) are women and two (22%) are from an ethnic minority background. This is significantly more representative than the current make up of the superintendent rank which is comprised of 17% women and 4% ethnic minority.

    Police Now, implemented in the Metropolitan Police, appointed 69 people to start their training, up from an anticipated 50 owing to the high calibre of applicants. Of these, 43% are women and 9% are from a BME background, compared to the national BME proportion of 5.5%.

  • Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2015-10-21.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to achieve UN Sustainable Development Goal 10 in the UK.

    Mr David Gauke

    The government is committed to tackling inequality. According to the latest ONS statistics, original income inequality in the UK is at its lowest level since 1989.

    The government believes that the best way to reduce inequality and poverty is through tackling unemployment, and getting workless households into work. Employment has increased by 2 million since the 2010 election, and the percentage of workless households is lower than at any point under the last Labour government.

    The Government is tackling low pay by introducing a new National Living Wage (NLW) for workers aged 25 and above from April 2016. On current OBR forecasts, by 2020 the NLW will be over £9 an hour, meaning a full-time worker aged 25 or above will earn over £4,800 a year more in cash terms than under the current National Minimum Wage.

  • Matthew Offord – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Women and Equalities

    Matthew Offord – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Women and Equalities

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Offord on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what response her Department has received to the consultation on regulations on the gender pay gap.

    Caroline Dinenage

    This government is committed to closing the gender pay gap in a generation by addressing the underlying causes of the gender pay gap, including the gender bonus gap. Our consultation on Closing the Gender Pay Gap closed on 6 September, and received nearly 700 responses. Over 200 employers and business organisations responded, including the CBI, whose members employ around a third of the private sector workforce. We have announced that this will apply to large employers and to large public bodies. We will be working with employers on how this will be implemented as they will be required to publish information showing the differences in pay between men and women.

  • Johnny Mercer – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Johnny Mercer – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Johnny Mercer on 2015-10-21.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect on earnings of the increase in the personal allowance planned for 2016-17; and how he plans to deliver an increase in that allowance to £12,500 by 2020.

    Mr David Gauke

    Summer Budget 2015 confirmed that the personal allowance will increase from £10,600 in 2015-16 to £11,000 in 2016-17. These changes will benefit over 29 million individuals, taking 570,000 taxpayers out of income tax altogether. A typical basic rate taxpayer will see their income tax bill reduced by £905, compared to 2010.

    This is the first step towards meeting our commitment to raise the personal allowance to £12,500 by the end of this parliament.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations, if any, they have made to British Members of the European Parliament about voting against European Union legislation requiring countries to carry out spot checks on the emissions of vehicles under real operating conditions.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    In July this year, Defra prepared a voting brief for British MEPs concerning the revised National Emission Ceilings Directive. This advised MEPs to oppose an amendment which included the introduction of spot checks on vehicle emissions under real operating conditions, because the aim of the amendment and how it related to existing regimes was unclear. The Government supports the implementation of real driving emissions testing for vehicles but strongly believes that this should be addressed in the appropriate legislation to ensure clarity.

  • Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Verma on 19 October (HL2591), what are the present seaborne links they provide to the people of Tristan da Cunha.

    Baroness Verma

    Her Majesty’s Government does not provide seaborne links to the people of Tristan da Cunha. Freight and passenger services are provided on a commercial basis by a private company.

  • Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what financial support is available specifically for refugees who have been granted asylum in the United Kingdom, and are therefore ineligible for the weekly allowance for asylum seekers.

    Lord Bates

    Those granted refugee status or humanitarian protection, including those resettled under our three resettlement schemes, are entitled to work without restriction and have full access to the mainstream benefits system on the same terms as British citizens and other permanent residents in the UK. Asylum seekers are only permitted to work in the UK if their asylum claim has been outstanding for more than 12 months, providing the delay is not of their making. Employment is restricted to jobs on the shortage occupations list. We have no plans to reduce the time asylum seekers have to wait to take up employment.

  • Lord Taylor of Goss Moor – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Taylor of Goss Moor – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Goss Moor on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 17 September (HL2164), what were the responses received from the government of the Faroe Islands; and whether they will place any written responses in the Library of the House.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    At the time of writing, no formal written response has yet been received from the Faroese Government.

    However, as a result of our continued efforts, UK Government officials were invited to a meeting this month with officials from the Representation of the Faroes. This initial meeting provided a valuable opportunity for an exchange of views and, importantly, presents an opportunity for further dialogue with the Faroese authorities on this issue.