Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Chris Bryant – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    Chris Bryant – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Bryant on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of extending entitlement to repayment of children’s welfare loans to all claimants of universal credit once universal credit has been fully rolled out in Scotland.

    David Mundell

    The Scottish Government is responsible for defining the entitlement criteria for these passported benefits. They will need to consider the current eligibility criteria and make arrangements to ensure that they can continue to deliver these benefits as Universal Credit is introduced.

    There is ongoing engagement between the Scottish Government and the Department for Work and Pensions to ensure that any solution is simple, fair, easy to understand and affordable.

  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, if the Electoral Commission will conduct research into the use of data matching of local and national databases to better identify people who are entitled to register to vote but who are not registered.

    Mr Gary Streeter

    The Electoral Commission informs me that the Cabinet Office has previously conducted several pilots on this topic and the Commission has evaluated them. The full evaluation reports are available on the Commission’s website here: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/our-work/our-research/electoral-registration-research

    The Cabinet Office plans a further pilot for early 2015 and the Commission intends to evaluate this as well.

    “

  • Eilidh Whiteford – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Eilidh Whiteford – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Eilidh Whiteford on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the statement of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland, giving evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s Welfare Reform Committee on 26 June 2014, that ‘I want an analysis of the use of foodbanks that everybody can subscribe to’, whether his Department (a) is producing, (b) has commissioned or (c) plans to commission any new research into the use of foodbanks.

    Esther McVey

    The evidence David Mundell, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland provided to the Scottish Parliament’s Welfare Reform Committee on the 26 June highlighted the underlying complexity to the use of foodbanks.

    The Government has already commissioned a report on food security by Warwick University, which was published in February 2014. The Government has no immediate plans to produce or commission further research, but will keep this under review.

    Benefit clearance times are steadily improving with 92% of benefits being processed on time (within 16 days) nationally which is 6 percentage points higher than in 2009/10.

    We have in place a robust system of safeguards that seek to ensure sanctions are only applied to those claimants who wilfully fail to meet their requirements. It remains the case that the vast majority of claimants do comply and are not sanctioned – each month only around 5% of JSA claimants are sanctioned and fewer than 1% of ESA claimants. Reduced payments are made where necessary to prevent hardship.

  • Nick de Bois – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Nick de Bois – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nick de Bois on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many apprenticeships there were in London on 31 May (a) 2010 and (b) 2014.

    Matthew Hancock

    Information on Apprenticeship starts and participation by Region are published in Supplementary Tables to a Statistical First Release:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/324021/apprenticeships-starts-by-geography-learner-demographics-and-sector-subject-area.xls

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/296370/Nov2013_Apprenticeships_Region_Participation.xls

    Apprenticeship data are presented by academic year. Final data for the full 2013/14 academic year will be published in November 2014.

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  • Bernard Jenkin – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Bernard Jenkin – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bernard Jenkin on 2014-06-25.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the speech delivered by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury in New York on 25 June 2014 represents the policy of the Government.

    Danny Alexander

    I recently visited the USA in my capacity as Chief Secretary to the Treasury, where I delivered speeches to audiences in New York and Washington on 23rd and 25th June respectively.

    Transcripts are available on the Treasury website: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/chief-secretary-on-investing-in-the-uk and https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/chief-secretarys-speech-to-the-centre-for-transatlantic-relations.

    “

  • Emma Reynolds – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Emma Reynolds – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Reynolds on 2015-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many community-led developments have completed as a result of the Community Right to Build.

    Stephen Williams

    A key priority for the Coalition Government has been to give communities greater control over shaping the development of their area. The Localism Act 2011 created new powers for communities to write their own neighbourhood plans and to gain planning permission for community-led development through Neighbourhood Development Orders and Community Right to Build Orders.

    Nearly 1,400 communities, covering six million people, are now engaged at different stages of the neighbourhood planning process, giving millions of people the chance to participate in identifying, and voting on, where development takes place and what it looks like. All 52 referendums held to date have resulted in big ‘yes’ votes and 34 plans have been ‘made’ (brought into force) and therefore are part of the development plan, the starting point for determining planning applications.

    The popularity of neighbourhood planning has shown that when given the opportunity, communities are keen to shape future development in their areas, and we expect the number of community-led developments to increase as more neighbourhood plans are finalised. Over the last two years there have been over 3,100 enquiries and 14,000 web hits relating to the Community Right to Build. The Community Right to Build gives communities the freedom to build new homes, shops, businesses or facilities where they want them, without going through the normal planning application process. Experience has shown that following discussions with the local planning authority for community-led development proposals, community groups have chosen to submit a planning application for their project, rather than a Community Right to Build Order.

    To ensure groups undertaking community-led development have the right support and advice to gain planning approval, we broadened the remit of available support funding to assist community groups to bring forward development either through Community Right to Build Orders or community-led planning applications.

    This has led to significant take up of funding for community-led projects coming forward, with over 100 applications for funding already approved by the Homes and Communities Agency and the Greater London Authority. Locality and their partners have also been working with 60 groups to provide assistance and advice.

    The first three referendums for Community Right to Build Orders took place in December, all of which were passed and are now in force.

    We have allocated a further £3.5 million to support the Community Right to Build and community-led planning applications for housing in 2015-18. On 17 February, my department announced a further £6 million funding boost to the community rights programme. This new funding will mean:

    • like-minded communities will be able to network and learn from each other through the new My Community Network;
    • communities will have access to tailored advice through a phone and online advice service to help them use the range of community rights and other neighbourhood approaches;
    • 100 more neighbourhoods will be supported to use the Our Place approach, enabling councils and other public sector providers, voluntary and community groups, local businesses and the community to work together to tackle important local issues from job creation to health priorities;
    • 100 communities will receive support to take the first steps in identifying important local issues and develop Community Action Plans;
    • 50 communities will receive support to develop economic plans to address local economic priorities like job creation and enterprise;
    • 50 local authority/community partnerships will receive advice, support and grants to support the transfer of multiple or complex publicly owned assets into community ownership; and
    • 6 new contracts have been awarded to external partners to support communities in using the community rights in 2015-16.

  • Caroline Flint – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Caroline Flint – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2015-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what proportion of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s budget he expects to be spent on decommissioning and cleaning up nuclear plants in (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2015-16.

    Matthew Hancock

    The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority expects the proportion of its expenditure through its Site Licence Companies that is used for decommissioning, as defined for the purposes of the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s Annual Report and Accounts, to be 37% in 2014-15 and 41% in 2015-16. The remainder of this budget will be spent on waste and nuclear materials management, commercial operations and support costs.

  • Naomi Long – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Naomi Long – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Naomi Long on 2015-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if she will include Kincora Boys’ Home in the independent inquiry into historical child sex abuse, established by the Home Office, in order to allow potential witnesses not to be constrained by the Official Secrets Act.

    Mrs Theresa Villiers

    It remains my view that the inquiry chaired by Sir Anthony Hart is the best forum to consider the allegations surrounding Kincora.

    As you may be aware the Attorney General for England and Wales has written to the Chairman of the Inquiry and provided an undertaking in the usual format about the admissibility and use of evidence given by a witness who co-operates with the Inquiry. This undertaking covers any offences arising under the Official Secrets Act.

  • Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to publish evaluations of the universal credit in work conditionality pilots.

    Esther McVey

    The Department is currently developing the evaluation strategy, including publication plans, for the large-scale Randomised Controlled Trials that we will deliver in Universal Credit. The first of these trials will be launched in April this year.

  • Emma Reynolds – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Emma Reynolds – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Reynolds on 2015-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many procurement processes have been triggered as a result of the Community Right to Challenge.

    Stephen Williams

    The Department does not collect or collate administrative data from local authorities on the number of Expressions of Interest they receive under the Community Right to Challenge. We do however carry out follow up surveys with community groups and parish councils that have used the Community Right to Challenge support service. The Department also collates intelligence from local authorities, where they speak to us about an Expression of Interest.

    From this, we are aware of 51 Expressions of Interest submissions to councils, but this is not a comprehensive figure. Of these, we know of seven completed procurement exercises, four of which have resulted in the organisation that submitted the Expressions of Interest winning a contract. We know of two other cases where an Expression of Interest has been accepted and a procurement triggered, but not completed.

    We know that voluntary groups remain interested in the Community Right to Challenge. The most recent follow up survey of organisations using the Community Right to Challenge support service showed that a further 43 groups, out of 105 respondents, were intending to submit an Expression of Interest in the next 12 months.

    We do know that Challenge is recognised by the voluntary and community and parish sectors as being helpful in opening up relationships with lcoal authorities. In a recent survey of 188 enquirers to the advice service, 25% were in negotiation with their council on potential commissioning and said negotiation had come about as a direct result of the Challenge legislation. Almost half (48%) felt that their local authority was more open to contracting with eligible bodies than before the legislation came into force and 25% were working with ttheir authorities on commissioning as a result of the legislation. 70% felt the support they received had improved their contrct readiness and 82% were expecting to bid for the delivery of public services. Timescales for procurement exercises are sdignificant but we are working with support providers to monitor the number of organisations that succeed in winning contracts.

    This information is informing our future programme of work especially around commissioning processes. Community groups advise us that they are encouraged by the shift in culture and the changing mind-sets of procurement and commissioning officiers in councils across England as a result of the Localism Act 2011. They tell us the community rights have prompted many councils to examine how local public services are commissioned in their area.

    Through our support programme we have supported 376 groups with specialist referrals and provided 216 groups with financial assistance to develop their capacity to bid for and deliver services.