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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Conor McGinn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Conor McGinn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Conor McGinn on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the effect of proposed changes to the feed-in-tariff on solar firms and small businesses in (a) St Helens North constituency, (b) the North West and (c) the UK.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Our consultation on the feed-in tariff review reflects the need to balance sector support whilst keeping bills down for consumers.

    We strongly welcome evidence from the sector during this review consultation, which ends on 23 October.

  • Madeleine Moon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Madeleine Moon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Madeleine Moon on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the effect on carbon emissions of the reduction on feed-in tariffs; and if she will make a statement.

    Andrea Leadsom

    In order to meet the 2050 target, we know we will need significant cuts in emissions across all parts of the economy.

    This will not depend on any single technology, but rather will need a balanced mix of low carbon technologies, including nuclear, renewables, and carbon capture and storage (CCS) in order to help tackle the threat of climate change while keeping the lights on and ensuring the best value for consumers.

    The feed-in tariff scheme has been extremely successful in deploying small-scale renewables. The scheme has already exceeded our 2020/21 projections for hydro, wind, and anaerobic digestion and is within the projected range for solar PV. Given this, alongside the risk of rising costs to consumers, it is right to consider cost control measures.

  • Catherine McKinnell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Catherine McKinnell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine McKinnell on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many expressions of interest have been received for the (a) Mid Tier and (b) Higher Tier of the new Countryside Stewardship scheme.

    George Eustice

    Expressions of interest were not invited for the Mid-Tier of the new Countryside Stewardship scheme, however:

    a) 5,640 requests for Mid-Tier application packs were received, resulting in 2,314 agreement applications; and

    b) 1,025 expressions of interest were received for the Higher Tier of the new Countryside Stewardship scheme, together with 257 applications for forestry agreements.

  • Fiona Mactaggart – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Fiona Mactaggart – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Mactaggart on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he plans to raise the human rights of ethnic and religious minorities in India during the visit of Prime Minister Modi to the UK in November 2015; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    India and the UK have a rich, wide-ranging and mature bilateral relationship. We will discuss a broad spectrum of issues during Prime Minister Modi’s visit.

    The UK raises a range of human rights matters with India, including religious freedom and the treatment of ethnic minorities, both bilaterally and through the EU. This includes meeting Union and State level government institutions, such as the Indian National Commission for Minorities, which the British High Commission in New Delhi met earlier this month. The High Commission also stays in regular contact with civil society organisations and senior faith leaders working on religious freedom across India.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU on relations between Spain and HM Government of Gibraltar.

    Mr David Lidington

    The Prime Minister is focused on delivering a successful renegotiation: he believes he can and will succeed in reforming and renegotiating our relationship with the EU and campaigning to keep the UK in the EU on that basis.

  • Nigel Adams – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nigel Adams – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of progress in diagnosing and treating cervical cancers more effectively in the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    We recognise that cervical screening continues to play a key role in preventing women getting, and being harmed by, cervical cancer. The NHS Cervical Screening Programme in England offers screening to women aged 25 to 49 every three years, and women aged 50 to 64 every five years. Women aged over 65 should only be screened if they have not been screened since age 50 or if they have had recent abnormal results.

    Human papillomavirus (HPV) testing as triage for women with mild and borderline results and as a test of cure for women previously treated for cervical abnormalities became routine across the NHS Cervical Screening Programme from 1 April 2014. This makes cervical screening more targeted and significantly reduces the need for repeat testing. It is estimated that over 160,000 women a year do not need repeat tests due to mild or borderline results and around 400,000 women have been removed from ten year annual follow-up due to a previous abnormal result.

    In April 2012, the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC), which advises Ministers and the National Health Service in all four countries about all aspects of screening policy and supports implementation, gave its support for a pilot to assess the value of using HPV testing as primary screening for cervical disease, rather than the currently used cytology test. The pilot has been establishing the feasibility of using HPV as the primary screen for cervical disease in order to achieve better outcomes for women, while minimising over-treatment and anxiety, and whether it is practical to roll out nationally. The UK NSC opened a public consultation on this in July 2015. The consultation closes on 2 November 2015. Ministers expect to receive a recommendation from the UK NSC following the closure of the public consultation.

    Earlier diagnosis and prevention is a key focus of the Independent Cancer Taskforce report, Achieving World-Class Cancer Outcomes: A Strategy for England 2015-2020. It includes a recommendation that, assuming a positive recommendation by the NSC, Public Health England and NHS England should drive a rapid roll-out of primary HPV testing into the cervical screening programme. The Taskforce also made a number of recommendations on the early diagnosis of cancers more generally.

    In addition, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published a range of guidance on the treatment and screening of cervical cancer and further information is available at:

    www.nice.org.uk/guidance/conditions-and-diseases/cancer/cervical-cancer

    “

  • Liam Byrne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Liam Byrne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liam Byrne on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of children who are the children of alcoholics.

    Jane Ellison

    The main source for estimates of children of alcohol-misusing parents comes from a 2009 research paper which provided new estimates of the number of children (under 16 years) of substance misusing parents. The report found:

    – 6% living with a dependent drinker (over 700,000 children);

    – Around 26,000 babies under the age of one in England living with a parent who would be classified as a ‘dependent’ drinker.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that (a) his Department and (b) the NHS gives mental health parity of esteem with physical health.

    Alistair Burt

    We continue to take mental health as seriously as physical health and to hold the National Health Service to account for achieving the objectives set out in the NHS Mandate, ensuring that mental and physical health conditions are given equal priority. The Mandate makes clear that ‘everyone who needs it should have timely access to evidence-based services’.

    We have legislated for parity of esteem between mental and physical health via the Health and Social Care Act 2012.

    We have already expanded our world-leading psychological therapy services and we have invested over £120 million in order to introduce for the first time waiting times standards for mental health services from April 2015 – a very significant milestone on the road to parity. Next year we will invest £15 million into improving the provision of places of safety, in order to ensure that people in crisis receive assessments in appropriate premises, and not in police custody.

    We have made clear that each clinical commissioning group’s (CCG) spending on Mental Health should increase in real terms.

    NHS England’s published planning guidance for 2015/16 for commissioners made the expectation clear that each CCGs spend on mental health services in 2015/16 should increase in real terms, and grow by at least the same percentage as each CCG’s allocation increase.

    We will monitor this closely to ensure this happens.

  • Mark Menzies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Mark Menzies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Menzies on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to provide sufficient health services in Lancashire to meet increased demand from new residents of large housing developments in Fylde.

    Ben Gummer

    It is the responsibility of local commissioners to plan, develop and provide NHS services according to the healthcare needs of their local populations.

    NHS England advises that both Fylde and Wyre borough councils have received feedback on their proposed housing development plans from the local clinical commissioning group (Fylde and Wyre CCG). We understand that this requested that planning policies acknowledge the need for existing primary care centres to expand to meet the needs of a growing local population. Should those existing sites not be capable of expansion, the CCG has requested support for new sites in those areas.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government plans to take to ensure that sufficient doctors and nurses are trained in the UK to maintain safe staffing levels in the NHS.

    Ben Gummer

    The Government has established Health Education England (HEE) as the body responsible for workforce planning and the commissioning of education and training for the National Health Service and public health system with a budget of £4.9 billion.

    The number of nurse training places has increased by 14% over the past three years, with currently over 50,000 nurses in training as at 31 March 2015.

    HEE is forecasting that, based on their current training plans, there will be 23,121 more nurses available to work in the NHS by 2019 compared to 2014.

    There are currently near record numbers of nurses and midwives in post in the NHS in England. The latest available figures from June 2015 show a total of 317,595 nurses and midwives in post.

    Since May 2010, the number of doctors in the NHS has increased by 8,574 to just under 104,000.