Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-02-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department provides to its managers on how many days training should be made available to staff.

    Mr Nick Gibb

    In line with the Capabilities Plan as part of the Civil Service Reform, the Department for Education recommends that all staff undertake at least five days of training and development every year. This could include formal training courses but may also be made up of other professional development opportunities, for example job shadowing and on the job training. This is not a maximum or minimum target, but a benchmark of expectations. This guidance is available to all managers and staff through the Department’s intranet pages.

  • Caroline Flint – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Caroline Flint – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2015-02-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 21 January 2015 to Question 220911, how much the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority expects to award Nuclear Management Partners in efficiency fees in (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2015-16.

    Matthew Hancock

    As owners of Sellafield Ltd, under the terms of the Parent Body Organisation (PBO) contract, Nuclear Management Partners is paid dividends funded by the fees earned by Sellafield Limited. The estimated fee payable to Sellafield Limited for 2014-15 is commercially sensitive and will not be disclosed until after it has been determined following the end of the financial year. For financial year 2015-16 the amount of fee pool available is still subject to discussion between Sellafield Limited and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.

  • Jeremy Corbyn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Jeremy Corbyn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeremy Corbyn on 2015-02-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the government of Democratic Republic of Congo on the arrest and incommunicado detention of 12 activists after protests in January 2015 against revision of the electoral law.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    During the recent period of unrest in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) officials at our Embassy in Kinshasa were in regular contact with the DRC authorities, and urged all parties to exercise calm and restraint. Officials also highlighted the importance of allowing those who wished to protest peacefully against the proposed electoral reform bill to be allowed to do so. This was echoed in an Foreign and Commonwealth Office statement https://www.gov.uk/government/news/fco-expresses-concern-over-violence-in-drc issued on 19 January.

    On 25 January a revised electoral law was passed, and on 26 January an FCO statement https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-welcomes-new-electoral-law-and-cessation-of-violence-in-drc welcomed the revised electoral law, which sought to address some of the protestors’ concerns. We are pleased that calls for an end to violence were heeded but are concerned that – according to UN reports – as many as 300 people remain in detention following the demonstrations, including some who have not had access to a lawyer. Of those currently being held, the UN estimates that at least 11 are believed to be in ‘incommunicado’ detention, including Christopher Ngoyi.

    Officials continue to raise the ongoing detention of protestors at the highest level. On 11 February, EU Head of Mission in Kinshasa issued a joint statement expressing concern at arrests and arbitrary detention of political activists by the security services. Those imprisoned for peacefully exercising their right to free speech must be released without delay.

  • Ian Austin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Ian Austin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2015-02-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of knee replacement operations that were carried out by West Midlands NHS trusts in the most recent year for which figures are available.

    Jane Ellison

    The sum of Finished Consultant Episodes (FCEs) with a main or secondary procedure of; (a) IVF cycle procedures, (b) cataract surgery procedures, (c) hip replacement operations, (d) knee replacement operations, (e) varicose vein surgery procedures and (f) breast reduction operations carried out by West Midlands NHS Trusts in 2013-14 is shown in the attached table.

  • Nigel Dodds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Nigel Dodds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Dodds on 2015-02-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what rules apply to the entry into the UK of diplomatic personnel from countries identified by the Government on countries of concern in relation to human rights violations and corruption.

    James Brokenshire

    Diplomats posted to an Embassy or High Commission in the UK or who are in transit through the UK to their diplomatic posting are exempt from immigration control. This means that any checks are limited to verifying the person’s nationality and identity, that they are exempt from immigration control and they are the rightful holder of the document presented.

    People holding diplomatic passports coming to the UK for any other reason are assessed against the Immigration Rules. In certain cases individuals are subject to international travel bans, imposed by the EU or UN. These are imposed for a number of factors and human rights violations and corruption could be a factor in this decision.

  • Nigel Dodds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Nigel Dodds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Dodds on 2015-02-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the UN World Food Programme in Syria in ensuring that food parcels reach their intended recipients.

    Justine Greening

    DFID has applied a rigorous process of due diligence to the UN World Food Programme (WFP) as we do with all our partners in Syria and DFID staff in the region are in regular contact with WFP staff.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Sadiq Khan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2015-02-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison officers who have received severance or redundancy packages since May 2010, have subsequently been re-employed as prison officers.

    Andrew Selous

    50 prison officers who received a severance package since May 2010 have subsequently been re-employed as prison officers (up to 30 September 2014). The majority of the officers who have been re-employed have returned on a fixed-term basis as part of the HM Prison Service Reserves, which has been established to support capacity changes and fluctuations in staffing numbers. In total less than 1% of the officers who received a severance package since May 2010 have returned to work for NOMS.

    This figure is rounded to the nearest 10, in line with the departmental policy for presenting staffing data.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-02-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the average number of days training of full-time equivalent staff employed in his Department was in each of the last three financial years.

    Claire Perry

    The Department for Transport encourages staff to take full advantage of the wide range of development available and to undertake at least five days a year of development.

    Staff in the Department has undertaken the average number of day’s formal development over the last three financial years:

    · 2013-14 – 4.5 days

    · 2012-13 – 3.5 days

    · 2011-12 – 4 days

    In addition to this, staff have engaged in a good deal of informal development which is not easy to capture for example on the job training, coaching and mentoring.

  • Kate Green – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Kate Green – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Green on 2015-02-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what his estimate is of the (a) cost of awards and (b) administration costs of the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme in (i) the first year of the scheme and (ii) each of the next 10 years.

    Mr Mark Harper

    The information requested is available from the Impact Assessment for the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme which was published in March 2014. This sets out the anticipated levels of claims, awards and costs over the first 10 years of the scheme.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/286525/mesothelioma-payment-scheme-ia-mar-2014.pdf

    The scheme has now been running since April 2014 with payments being made from July 2014. We will review the estimates made in the Impact Assessment in light of data on the actual number of claims and payments made in 2014/15 and will publish the outcome of that review in due course.

    “

  • Baroness Stern – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Baroness Stern – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2015-02-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they have taken in response to the report of HM Inspectorate of Prisons on HMP Nottingham in respect of its conclusion that HMP Nottingham was failing most of its core responsibilities.

    Lord Faulks

    The National Offender Management Service has taken immediate action to improve the situation. An experienced temporary Governor was urgently appointed to bring stability and to implement rapid improvements. Subsequently, a new permanent Governor was appointed on 1 February 2015. A review of the staffing levels needed to complete the improvement work required has led to additional staff resources being deployed to the prison. There have been fewer incidents of serious assaults on prisoners and staff, concerted indiscipline and incidents at height since the inspection and there has been a marked improvement in the overall operational stability of the establishment. As with all inspection reports, NOMS will now produce an action plan in response to the recommendations.

    Improvements in staffing levels have allowed an increase in the amount of time that prisoners can participate in recreational activities, such as using the gymnasium. It has also enabled prisoners to undertake more educational workshops to enhance employability skills. .

    Since the Inspection, HMP Nottingham’s Violence Reduction (VR) Policy has been rewritten and implemented and, in line with the national NOMS VR Policy, requires staff to challenge all forms of violence and apply appropriate sanctions. Additional resources have been allocated to monitoring and managing violence reduction and safer custody. Use of the Independent Adjudicator and/or referral to the Police for consideration of prosecution for violent incidents has increased dramatically. HMP Nottingham continues to challenge all forms of violence and actively promotes a zero tolerance to it. The prison is forging stronger links with the local Police and Crown Prosecution Service to ensure that, where appropriate, prisoners involved in violence are prosecuted.

    The operational capacity of HMP Nottingham was reduced, at the time of the inspection, from 1100 to 1060. There are now regular bedding and clothing checks. This helps to recover items that have been stockpiled by prisoners, to ensure fair allocation of clean clothing and bedding. Additional clothes and bedding have also been issued.