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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • The Lord Bishop of Durham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The Lord Bishop of Durham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Durham on 2016-09-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what contingency plans are in place to provide humanitarian aid in the event of a poor harvest in Burundi.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK Government is very concerned by the ongoing political unrest in Burundi and its humanitarian consequences. Burundi had high levels of food insecurity before the political crisis. However, the increase in market prices, the impact of late and heavy El-Nino rains, and the loss of livelihoods could result in further food insecurity and malnutrition.

    DFID Ministers have already committed £3 million for humanitarian preparedness and early response within Burundi. We have further set aside contingency funds of up to £4 million should the situation deteriorate. DFID will monitor the humanitarian and food security situation and ensure appropriate support is provided if the situation warrants it.

  • Nicholas Soames – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Nicholas Soames – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the reliability of the power and propulsion systems of the Type 45 Destroyer.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    I refer my right hon. Friend to the reply given by my noble Friend the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence, Lord Astor of Hever on 2 March 2015, to the noble Lord, Lord Davies of Stamford, in the House of Lords to Question HL 5030.

    Progress continues to be made over the reliability of the existing power and propulsion system.

  • Heidi Alexander – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Heidi Alexander – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2015-12-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when (a) his Department, (b) NHS England and (c) Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust first received a copy of the Mazers report on Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust.

    Alistair Burt

    A search of the Department’s Ministerial correspondence database has identified 40 items of correspondence expressing concerns about Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust. This figure represents correspondence received by the Department’s Ministerial correspondence unit only.

    In 2014, NHS England initiated action including an investigation of the deaths of all patients of the trust who had been in receipt of mental health or learning disability services since 2011.

    We are advised by NHS England that a first draft of the Mazars report was shared with it and Southern Health Foundation Trust in September 2015. The Department has not received a copy of the report and the report is still to be finalised before publication.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Sadiq Khan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2016-01-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much his Department spent on children’s playgrounds in each year since 2008.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Department of Communities and Local Government does not collect the information requested.

  • Lord Black of Brentwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Black of Brentwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2016-02-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the human papilloma virus vaccination programme for men who have sex with men will commence.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The Department and Public Health England are currently undertaking a procurement exercise to secure vaccine to support the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination programme for girls. The procurement will take account of the costs and benefits of all vaccines offered to establish which provides best value for money for the National Health Service.

    In November 2015, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), the expert body that advises the Government on all immunisation matters, advised that a targeted HPV vaccination programme should be undertaken for men who have sex with men up to 45 years of age who attend genitourinary medicine and HIV clinics. They noted that this should be subject to procurement of the vaccine and delivery of the programme at a cost-effective price. The JCVI acknowledged that finding a way to implement its advice would be challenging and made clear that work was needed by the Department and others to consider commissioning and delivery routes for this programme. This work is already underway and we will announce our plans as soon as we can.

  • Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-03-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she has taken to ensure that adequate ring-fenced funding is provided to local authorities so they can successfully deliver the Government’s childcare provision targets.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    We have already announced over £1bn more for the early years entitlements within the ring-fenced Dedicated Schools Grant by 2019-20, which includes £300m to uplift the funding rate to providers. The increase to the funding rate is based on robust evidence from the Review of the Cost of Childcare. We have made clear our commitment to maximise the amount of this funding which reaches front line childcare providers, and will consult on proposals for achieving this as part of our consultation on early years funding reform later this year.

  • Chris Leslie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Chris Leslie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Leslie on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what analysis his Department or NHS England has undertaken of the potential effect on medical research of dismantling the Corsellis Brain Collection; and if he will place any such analysis in the Library.

    George Freeman

    Started in the early 1950s by Professor Nick Corsellis at Runwell Hospital, in recent years the Corsellis Collection of brain pathology specimens has been managed and maintained by West London Mental Health Trust (WLMHT). The excess costs of maintaining the collection can only be supported by WLMHT from funds received for patient care. Therefore WLMHT has decided to dispose of the collection by seeking expressions of interest in the brain tissue of value for research, mainly sub-collections of the less common pathologies, and to respectfully dispose of that tissue for which no scientific purpose could be envisaged.

    WLMHT has received expressions of interest, but none in taking the complete collection. The original timescale for closure was by the end of March 2016, but WLMHT will support a further three months activity to meet the additional requests for tissue samples. The collection will close by the end of June.

    The Department and NHS England have not made any specific assessment of the contribution of the collection to medical research and health improvement in the United Kingdom, or undertaken any specific analysis of the potential effect on medical research of dismantling the collection.

    The Medical Research Council supports a range of brain tissue banks which have been set-up around specific disorders and diseases generally to collect post-mortem brain tissue from consented donors.

  • David Lammy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    David Lammy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Lammy on 2016-05-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 27 April 2016 to Question 34579, what funding was allocated to the Defence Diversity and Inclusion Programme in (a) 2014, (b) 2015 and (c) 2016; and how many staff are directly responsible for the (i) strategy and (ii) delivery of that programme.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The Defence Diversity and Inclusion Programme (DDIP) is driving change in the core areas of leadership and culture; recruitment; retention and progression; and outreach by ensuring diversity and inclusion considerations as part of normal business across the whole Department. This involves staff and funding across all areas of the Department, to define how this should be done and ensure delivery as part of people’s existing roles wherever they work.

    The Ministry of Defence is dedicated to achieving a more diverse workforce and is undertaking various activities to increase the number of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) recruits into the Armed Forces to 10% by 2020 and has allocated resources for this purpose.

    The cost of funding the DDIP is disaggregated amongst budgets across the Department; therefore a response could only be provided at disproportionate cost. As part of the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review we dedicated additional resources to recruitment activity in order to help generate a more diverse workforce and reach all parts of the UK’s Armed Forces community.

  • Lord Chidgey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Chidgey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Chidgey on 2016-06-28.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports that Regency Mining is undertaking mining operations in South Kordofan.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Regency Mines is a UK-registered company, which has operated agrominerals in Sudan. Following recent contact with the company, we understand that Regency Mines has no operations in South Kordofan, an area affected by conflict. More broadly, the United Kingdom advocates for the whole of the extractives industry to adopt the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights, which provide guidance to companies operating in countries affected by conflict.

  • Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-09-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the contribution that busking makes to community life.

    Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen

    The Government is clear that live music and street entertainment play an important role in community life and can generate a positive atmosphere that can be enjoyed by all. It can help in introducing performers to new audiences and contributes significantly in establishing and developing new talent.