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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policy of recent military defeats by Afghan forces; and what discussions he has had with his Afghan counterparts on the insurgency at Kunduz.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We enjoy a close security dialogue with the National Unity Government in Kabul. The Commander Joint Forces Command, the Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff and the Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for Sevenoaks (Mr Fallon) have all visited Afghanistan recently to discuss the security situation with Afghan counterparts. When the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF) assumed full responsibility for national security at the end of 2014, we and they understood that there would inevitably be testing times ahead. The ANDSF have responded well. The Taliban attack on the city of Kunduz was a setback for ANDSF, but government forces have regained control of the city. NATO will be working with the Afghan Government to identify lessons from this incident and the fighting season more broadly. NATO and the UK remain committed partners of the Afghan Government. The Taliban should accept President Ghani’s invitation now to end the fighting and join the peace process.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of John Boehner’s resignation as US Congress Speaker on US-UK relations.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    I was sorry to hear of Mr Boehner’s resignation. He has been a good friend to the UK and a strong advocate of the transatlantic relationship. It is unclear at this stage who the next Speaker will be but we remain confident that, whomever is selected, the UK-US relationship will remain as vibrant and strong as ever. We look forward to working with his successor.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects NICE to publish its final guidance on the Vimizim treatment.

    George Freeman

    The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence currently expects to publish its final guidance on elosulfase alfa (Vimizim) for mucopolysaccharidosis (type IVA) or Morquio Syndrome in December 2015.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of staff morale in NHS England.

    George Freeman

    NHS England has regularly surveyed staff opinion and experience since it was established in 2013. The most recent staff survey was conducted in July 2015 and was open to all employees of the organisation. 66% of all employees responded to the survey and the overall morale and engagement score was 63% positive.

    Informed by feedback from the staff surveys, NHS England launched a programme of work to enhance staff engagement and diversity, build skills and capabilities and improve business processes, as the survey identified these as issues that impact upon staff morale and satisfaction levels.

  • Dr Matthew Offord – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Dr Matthew Offord – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dr Matthew Offord on 2015-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many of the ePassport gates at Stansted Airport were fully functional on the evening of Monday 12 October 2015.

    James Brokenshire

    All fifteen ePassport Gates were open and fully functional at Stansted Airport on the evening of Monday 12 October 2015.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2015-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the reasons are for the time taken to change regulations to allow mothers’ names to be recorded on marriage certificates; what timetable is in place for that change to be made; whether she has made an assessment of the feasibility of allowing that change to be phased in as marriage registers are replaced; and if she will make a statement.

    James Brokenshire

    The Home Office is working with all interested parties to confirm the most efficient and effective way to enable mothers’ names to be recorded on marriage certificates.

    Achieving this is likely to require additional funding and changes to legislation, IT systems and administrative processes.

    The Government will confirm a timetable for the introduction of the changes in due course.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2015-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will ensure that at least 1,000 Syrian children are brought to settle in the UK before Christmas 2015.

    Richard Harrington

    Scaling up the system in a way that protects the interests of all concerned, including local communities, will take a little bit of time. It will take several months to reach full capacity. However, on 19 October, I set out our intention to welcome 1,000 Syrian refugees (adults and children) before Christmas. This is the ambition that the Home Office are working towards and we will report on it after Christmas.

    We are not expecting the refugees arriving in the first months of the scheme to include unaccompanied children.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department plans to take to ensure that automotive manufacturers have not falsified emissions data in the same manner as Volkswagen has done.

    Andrew Jones

    In the UK, the Vehicle Certification Agency conducts tests on vehicles and components to ensure they meet the minimum standards required by European and UN-ECE legislation.

    Emissions tests are carried out to determine that the level of pollutants emitted from a vehicle is below the required limits. The test is a laboratory based test under controlled conditions in order to achieve repeatable results.

    The Department for Transport recognises the current test cycle for emissions is outdated and no longer represents normal driving patterns. Discussions have taken place over recent years to replace this with an updated more relevant laboratory test. The Department anticipates this will be implemented from 2017. In addition, a new real world driving emissions test is being implemented to ensure emissions in normal driving comply with the legal obligation. These new tests will remove the ability of car manufacturers to falsify test results.

    All new vehicles are tested in accordance with EU law to ensure that they meet the legislated requirements for emissions. There is no evidence that these emissions tests have been falsified in the UK.

  • Owen Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Owen Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Owen Smith on 2015-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average length of time is that pensioners currently in receipt of the Support for Mortgage Interest scheme have been claiming that benefit.

    Justin Tomlinson

    A reliable estimate is not available. Consistent data on SMI claims has only been collected since 1996 and durations of claims starting before then cannot be calculated.

  • 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 2015-10-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what provisions are in place to support and promote the mental wellbeing of the NHS workforce.

    Ben Gummer

    Employers across the National Health Service are responsible for the mental health and wellbeing of their staff.

    The Department commissions NHS Employers to help trusts improve staff mental health and wellbeing through advice, guidance and good practice[1].

    In addition, trusts have access to local data from the NHS Staff Survey, the staff Friends and Family test as well as local information to help them develop and implement local improvement plans.

    The recent launch of the How are you feeling NHS?[2] Toolkit by NHS Employers is aimed at enabling staff to talk more openly about their emotional health, improving the assessment of the impact emotional wellbeing has on staff and patients and enabling action planning to improve staff emotional health and wellbeing. Since it launched on 29 July it has had more than 16,000 views.

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

    [2] 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