Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Jim Sheridan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Jim Sheridan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Sheridan on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the president of Sudan regarding the death sentence given to Meriam Yehya Ibrahim.

    Mark Simmonds

    The President of Sudan is indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes and has refused to cooperate. In common with other EU countries, we have a policy of having no contact with fugitives from the ICC unless it is essential. However, we have raised Meriam’s conviction in the strongest terms with Sudanese Ministers, including by summoning the Chargé d’Affaires to the Foreign Office on 19 May, at the request of the Foreign Secretary. Immediately following her conviction, I released a statement describing her conviction as barbaric and calling upon the Government of Sudan to respect the right to freedom of religion and international human rights laws as enshrined in its own constitution. The Parliamentary-Under Secretary of State at the Department for International Development, my Hon. Friend the Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Ms Featherstone), also raised this issue with the Foreign Minister of Sudan on 20 May.

  • Luciana Berger – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to improve hepatitis C diagnosis and treatment rates among (a) South Asian populations, (b) homeless people, (c) injecting drug users and (d) other at-risk groups.

    Jane Ellison

    The commissioning of local Hepatitis C services, including bespoke services for homeless people or other at-risk groups, is the responsibility of local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs). NHS England expects that decisions made by local CCGs will take account of the needs of their local populations.

    A range of materials has been published to help CCGs commission relevant services. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published guidance on improving uptake of testing and diagnosis for hepatitis C in risk groups. Public Health England has published a commissioning template to support commissioning of hepatitis C diagnosis and treatment services. Guidance for commissioning bespoke services for homeless people has been published by the Faculty for Homeless and Inclusion Health.

    The Department supports the Inclusion Health programme which champions the health and health care of vulnerable groups, including homeless people. The programme seeks to improve the health data for these groups, and set out practical steps for assessing needs (e.g. through Joint Strategic Need Assessments) and commissioning services. We are also involved in funding work in this area through the Homeless Hospital Discharge Fund to improve hospital discharge arrangements for people who are homeless (£10 million 2013-14) and £40 million capital fund for hostel refurbishment with a focus on improving health outcomes (2014-15).

  • Douglas Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Douglas Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 10 April 2014, Official Report, column 3778W, on Syria, what assessment his Department has made of the likelihood of President Assad complying with the agreed Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons timetable for the removal and destruction of Syria’s stockpile of chemical weapons.

    Mr William Hague

    The regime has missed all deadlines set by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons Executive Council for the removal of chemicals from Syria, including their own deadline of 27 April 2014. Around 7.5 per cent of the materials remain. This means that the 30 June 2014 deadline set by the UN for the elimination of the material can no longer be met. Responsibility for this rests with the regime.

    The functional destruction of Syria’s chemical weapon manufacturing capability and the removal of more than 90 per cent of the chemicals used in the programme are significant achievements. However, Syria’s failure to meet the deadlines for removal of the remaining chemicals is unacceptable. The UK and partners continue to press for the urgent completion of removal operations.

  • Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Robertson on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many commissions he has extended for Royal Navy officers at or between level QF2 to QF4, who were officers before 1999, to address a lack of suitably qualified and experienced personnel.

    Anna Soubry

    Extensions of Service for Royal Navy Officers are not made by Ministers but are a matter for the Royal Navy. However, the information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

  • Andrew Stephenson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Andrew Stephenson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2014-06-09.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the number of families that would be eligible for support for childcare costs under the provisions of the Childcare Payments Bill in (a) the North West, (b) Lancashire and (c) Pendle constituency.

    Nicky Morgan

    The information requested is not available.

  • Peter Luff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Peter Luff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Luff on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the review of design and technology GCSE/GCE examination specifications will bring those examinations in line with the revised national curriculum for design and technology.

    Elizabeth Truss

    The GCSE and GCE Awarding Organisations are leading on developing new design and technology GCSEs and A levels. They are ensuring that the content builds on and is in line with the revised design and technology national curriculum.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Dan Jarvis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average annual cost is of a place in a new Secure College.

    Jeremy Wright

    The Government’s vision for Secure Colleges was set out on 17 January 2014 in its response to the consultation paper “Transforming Youth Custody”. Secure Colleges will place education at the heart of custody, and equip young people with the skills they need to turn their lives around.

    The current average cost of a place in youth custody is around £100,000 per annum, with some places costing in excess of £200,000. Secure colleges will achieve ongoing savings by operating at a significantly lower cost per place than the current average, while allowing withdrawal from more expensive and inefficient provision.

    The MOJ will not publish estimates of the annual cost per place until the operator competition for the Secure College has been completed, to avoid prejudicing the effectiveness of the competition.

  • David Morris – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    David Morris – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Morris on 2014-06-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will introduce a concessionary bus fare scheme for 16 to 18 year olds to allow them to pay child fare for their school bus passes.

    Stephen Hammond

    The Government currently has no plans to introduce a national statutory concession for young people. However, we recognise the importance of affordable and accessible bus services in enabling young people to access education, employment and training and note that, whilst there is no statutory obligation to provide reduced fares to young people, many bus operators and local authorities make discounts available. It is right that local authorities and the bus industry continue to take the lead in improving services for their younger customers, and I encourage them to continue innovating in this area.

  • Robert Syms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Robert Syms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Syms on 2014-06-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what proportion of UK carbon dioxide emissions that would otherwise have occurred will be prevented by the proposed wind farm at Navitus Bay.

    Gregory Barker

    The Department does not undertake analysis or hold information of this nature relating to specific developments. Potential impacts of proposed developments are assessed through the planning system. Based on the average carbon intensity of generation from all fossil fuel plants in 2012 (700 g/kWh), which wind would be expected to displace, and using standard historical average load factors for offshore wind farms from 2008 to 2012 inclusive, a wind farm of 1 Gigawatt (GW) of installed capacity is expected to displace approximately 2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. The Department publishes estimated energy and emissions projections to 2030, the latest update can be accessed at this link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/updated-energy-and-emissions-projections-2013

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  • Sheila Gilmore – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Sheila Gilmore – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sheila Gilmore on 2014-06-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what visits each of the Ministers in his Department have made since January 2013; and what the purpose of each such visit was.

    Mr David Lidington

    Details of Ministers’ visits overseas are published quarterly and can be found at:
    https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministers-transparency-publications

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