Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Andy Sawford – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Andy Sawford – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Sawford on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many times the Gold Suite has been opened at each Immigration Removal Centre in England and Wales in the last year; and what the nature was of each incident that caused it to be opened.

    Karen Bradley

    The Home Office command suite structure for the management of serious
    incidents is based on the model operated by the Prison Service. Silver Command
    Suites are opened in the establishment where the incident occurred.

    A Gold Command Suite is opened in Prison Service Headquarters for incidents
    where the Home Office requests mutual assistance from the Prison Service and is
    attended by a Home Office senior manager.

    Any other serious incident, which does not require mutual assistance but
    requires ongoing management, is dealt with by opening a Gold Command Suite at
    Detention Operations headquarters.

    The number of times Silver Suites have been opened in the past year in
    immigration removal centres is detailed in the table below for January 2013
    to March 2014 and is provided in line with the data periods for published statistics.

  • Philip Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Philip Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average cost per (a) prison place and (b) prisoner in each category of prison was in the latest period for which figures are available.

    Jeremy Wright

    The Department routinely publishes average costs per prisoner and prison place, based on actual net resource expenditure for each private and public sector prison and in summary form for the whole of the prison estate in England and Wales on an annual basis after the end of each financial year. This includes a breakdown of these costs by prison category and individual prison within each category, and separately by prisoner gender.

    The most recently published figures are for financial year 2012-13 which give an average annual Overall cost per place of £36,808 and average annual Overall cost per prisoner of £34,766. An average annual cost per male prisoner of £34,306 and £44,746 per female prisoner, based on Overall resource costs, is also published.

    The information for financial year 2012-13 is available in the Cost per Place and Prisoner and Supplementary Information files on the Department’s website at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/prison-and-probation-trusts-performance-statistics-201213

    Figures for 2013-14 will be published alongside the Management Information Addendums to the NOMS Annual Report and Accounts in October 2014.

    Continuing to reduce prison unit costs is one of the key targets for the Department. Between 2009/10 and 2012/13 prison unit costs (based on Overall prison costs) have reduced in real terms by 16% per place and 13% per prisoner.

    “

  • Eilidh Whiteford – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    Eilidh Whiteford – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, which official welfare-related engagements in Scotland (a) he and (b) other Ministers in his Department have attended together with Ministers in the Department of Work and Pensions since May 2010.

    David Mundell

    The Secretary of State for Scotland and I have carried out a series of welfare related visits from which we have fed back to DWP Ministers. DWP have also carried out a series of welfare related meetings. Specific accompanied visits are:

    In 2011 the then Secretary of State for Scotland undertook in April a visit to High Riggs Jobcentre Plus with Chris Grayling, and in May attended a youth employment event in Irvine with Iain Duncan Smith.

    In November 2012, Lord Freud and I undertook a series of welfare related engagements including meeting with the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations, Edinburgh Council and Dunedin Canmore Housing Association; discussions with locally elected members from Dumfries and Galloway, West Dunbartonshire and North Lanarkshire; and meeting with the Scottish Parliament Welfare Reform Committee.

    In July 2013, Lord Freud and I met with both the Scottish Minister for Housing and Welfare, Margaret Burgess MSP and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA), at Lord Freud’s office in London.

    Lord Freud and I also attended the 2013 Annual COSLA Conference where Lord Freud gave a key note speech on welfare reform.

    I recently completed a second round of meetings with all 32 local authorities in Scotland to seek their feedback on how the welfare reform changes are working in practice. I was also pleased to give evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s Welfare Reform Committee on the 26 June 2014.

  • Gordon Marsden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Gordon Marsden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his comments of 18 June 2014, Official Report, column 127WH, on sulphur regulations, whether he has (a) commissioned and (b) received any specific assessment of the potential effect on diesel prices in the UK as a result of implementation of the new sulphur regulation limits.

    Stephen Hammond

    The Department has not had discussions with the trade unions specifically on the implementation of the sulphur rules. However, the trade unions have had the opportunity to contribute their views during the eight-week public consultation on the draft UK Regulations and the associated Impact Assessment which commenced on 29 April 2014.

    The maturity and efficacy of ship-board exhaust gas cleaning system technology was one of the key subjects under consideration when I chaired the ‘round table’ meetings of industry stakeholders in October 2012 and March 2013 to which I referred in my Answer of 17 June 2014. At those meetings, first-hand information was forthcoming from both the shipping industry and the exhaust gas cleaning system technology industry.

    The Department has engaged the European Commission about the potential impacts of the new regulations and the scope for financial support from EU sources, including finance from the European Investment Bank. The Commission has reaffirmed the possibility of support for the maritime sector through the new Connecting Europe Facility or the Trans-European Network (TEN-T) programme.

    The Department is investigating impacts on prices as part of its assessment of the impact of the draft UK Regulations.

    The Department will conduct the review at an appropriate time and not later than the timetable specified in the Regulations themselves, in accordance with normal Government practice and consistent with the principles of better regulation. It would be premature to make a commitment now concerning the precise timing of the review.

  • Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people currently claiming jobseeker’s allowance are aged (a) 16, (b) 17, (c) 18, (d) 19, (e) 20, (f) 21, (g) 22, (h) 23, (i) 24 and (j) 25 years.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Rachel Reeves – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachel Reeves on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when the IT system being developed by his Department for universal credit will be fully operating.

    Esther McVey

    As part of the wider transformation in the development of digital services, the Department will further develop the work completed jointly with the Government Digital Service to test and implement an enhanced digital service. This enhanced digital service will integrate work and benefits activity allowing us to deliver the full scope of Universal Credit for all claimant types.

    Our single target operating model sets out how we will transform our approach and ways of working to ultimately make the Universal Credit service fully available online. Where it is both practical and operationally sensible to do so, we will integrate together the enhanced digital service with the existing Universal Credit service.

    We expect an early version of the digital service to be introduced to a limited number of claimants and staff by the end of 2014.

  • Chuka Umunna – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Chuka Umunna – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chuka Umunna on 2015-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 1 October 2014 to Question 206270, what discussions and meetings (a) Ministers in his Department, (b) officials in his Department and (c) Business Bank staff have had with (i) participating lenders and (ii) business organisations where allegations of misselling relating to the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme were discussed since 2012.

    Matthew Hancock

    The British Business Bank maintains regular contact with all of the main lenders participating in the Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme. Quarterly meetings are held at a senior level and the allegations of mis-selling have been on the agenda of those meetings since early in 2014. In addition, operational meetings take place on a regular basis. From August 2014 onwards more frequent senior level meetings have taken place with the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). At a meeting in August 2014 RBS agreed to our request that they should undertake to conduct an internal review. The findings of that review and a proposed course of action were presented at a meeting with the British Business Bank in December 2014, and senior executives from RBS met the Secretary of State on 14 January 2015. The British Business Bank has also discussed the ‘mis-selling’ allegations with the British Bankers’ Association and the Lending Standards Board, each on one occasion.

  • Damian Collins – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Damian Collins – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Damian Collins on 2015-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he expects his Department to respond to the recommendations of the 2014 report of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Gurkha Welfare.

    Anna Soubry

    The Government is very grateful to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Gurkha Welfare for their comprehensive report into historic Gurkha grievances. This report raised a number of issues, which the Government has been examining closely. Our response will be published shortly.

  • Julian Huppert – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Julian Huppert – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Huppert on 2015-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will consult representatives from the compostable plastic bags industry as part of her Department’s review of industry standards for the biodegradability of plastic material; and on how many occasions (a) Ministers and (b) officials have met representatives of (i) oxo-biodegradable and (ii) compostable plastic bag companies in the last 12 months.

    Dan Rogerson

    Neither I nor any of my Defra Ministerial colleagues have met representatives of either the oxo-biodegradable or compostable bag industries in the last 12 months.

    At the official level, I set up a Stakeholder Advisory Group in September last year, which will be consulted as part of the review of industry standards for the biodegradability of plastic material. The Stakeholder Advisory Group met twice last year and includes Government officials as well as representatives of the Renewable Energy Association (who represent the compostable bag companies), the Oxo-biodegradable Plastics Association, academics and a number of other industry stakeholders such as the British Plastics Federation and the Plastics and Films Association. We expect that this group will meet on three further occasions this year.

    In addition, officials have met representatives of oxo-biodegradable firms on two occasions in the last 12 months to provide feedback on unsuccessful applications for funding under the Small Business Research Initiative. Officials have also met representatives of companies manufacturing compostable bags on three occasions in the last 12 months.

  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2015-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what examples his Department holds of best practice in respect of work carried out to reduce traffic noise for residents living alongside main roads.

    Mr John Hayes

    Best practice measures that can be used to reduce road noise for residents living alongside the strategic road network are set out in the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges HD213/11. Low noise surfacing can be installed on new roads or when replacing existing worn out surfaces. Noise mitigation can be incorporated into the design of new roads by routeing away from properties where practicable and using cuttings and other land forms to act as noise barriers. Noise barriers, made from a wide variety of materials are also used to reduce road noise.