The below Parliamentary question was asked by and (4) more than 30 on 2015-12-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, on the current definition of coasting”
Earl of Courtown
No school can be defined as coasting under the government’s proposed coasting definition until after the 2016 results are available. The definition of coasting is determined by performance over a three year period.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlotte Leslie on 2016-01-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what provision is made for victims of crimes committed by foreign prisoners to access information about the progress of their deportation.
James Brokenshire
A victim may contact the Home Office directly or make a request via their Victim Liaison Officer (VLO) for information on the progress of a foreign prisoner’s deportation. The Home Office will inform the victim or their VLO on whether deportation is being pursued or has been enforced.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-02-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment her Department has made of the sensitivity of the single intradermal comparative cervical tuberculin test for Bovine TB; and what steps her Department is taking to improve testing for TB.
George Eustice
The single intradermal comparative cervical tuberculin (SICCT) commonly known as the ‘skin test’ is the legal standard approved in the EU legislation for the diagnosis of TB in live cattle in the UK. SICCT has a very high specificity giving on average only one false positive result for every 5,000 or 6,000 uninfected cattle tested, although it is only moderately sensitive (with about one in five to one in four infected cattle potentially missed by the test).
The skin test is a good herd screening test and it is supplemented by post-mortem meat inspection at commercial slaughter of cattle. When one or more infected animals are detected in a cattle herd, we apply a number of strategies to improve the overall sensitivity of TB testing until the infected herd regains officially TB free status. This includes testing the herd every 60 days, lowering the positive cut-off of the skin test (‘severe interpretation’) and supplementing the skin test with the more sensitive interferon-gamma blood test.
We have also increased the number of interferon-gamma blood tests carried out in conjunction with the SICCT to maximise the detection of infected cattle in TB breakdown herds. This number has more than quadrupled since 2009 to reach just over 74,000 blood tests in 2015. The use of this blood test to help remove infected animals from breakdown herds has been compulsory in the Low Risk Area of England since 2006 and in the whole of the Edge Area since January 2014.
My department plans to launch a public consultation that will set out proposals for enhancing the sensitivity of TB testing in TB breakdown herds.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Mactaggart on 2016-03-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has recently discussed the Istanbul Convention with the (a) Welsh and (b) Scottish Government; and if she will make a statement.
Karen Bradley
The previous Government signed the Istanbul Convention to show the strong commitment it placed on tackling violence against women and girls and this Government remains committed to ratifying it.
The devolved administrations are responsible for implementing the obligations of the Convention in their territories and the Government continues to liaise with them about ratification.
The UK already complies with the vast majority of the Convention’s articles but further amendments to domestic law, to take extra-territorial jurisdiction over a range of offences (as required by Article 44), are necessary before the Convention can be ratified. The Ministry of Justice is currently considering the approach to implementing the extra-territorial jurisdiction requirements in England and Wales and will seek to legislate when the approach is agreed and Parliamentary time allows. Ministry of Justice officials have been in contact with their counterparts in the devolved administrations about the requirements of Article 44.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-04-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 22 March 2016 to Question 30916, for what reason the 26 related party transactions by academy trusts classified as irregular or improper by the Education Funding Agency were not repaid by the trusts.
Edward Timpson
Repayment is considered on a case by case basis and may be sought where there has been a serious breach of requirements or standards of conduct. Some transactions may be classified as irregular or improper because of less serious procedural and compliance issues, or because of insufficient evidence to form an opinion. Repayment may not be pursued in these cases. The 26 related party transactions classified as irregular were assessed on this basis.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeff Smith on 2016-05-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 1 March 2016 to Question 27610, on Volkswagen, what response he has received from Volkswagen on the difference in compensation offered to US and UK customers.
Andrew Jones
We continue to engage with Volkswagen on the issue of compensation for UK consumers. The Secretary of State summoned the Managing Director of VW UK to a further meeting earlier this month to discuss the issue. Volkswagen’s position is that there is no evidence that drivers in the UK have suffered a loss, and so they maintain there is no need for compensation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Brown on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of the introduction of the Local Housing Allowance cap on the level of supply of supported housing.
Brandon Lewis
The Government is committed to protecting the most vulnerable, including through protecting and further boosting the supported housing supply we have already.
We are continuing to work with the supported housing sector and other partners to develop a sustainable and workable future for supported housing and will announce next steps in due course.
In the meantime we have put in place a one year exemption for supported housing from the Local Housing Allowance cap.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2016-09-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the final report and recommendations of the Review on Antimicrobial Resistance published on 19 May, what actions they are taking to reduce to agreed target levels the use in the UK of antibiotics in livestock and fish farming by 2018.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government published its response to the final report and recommendations of the Review on Antimicrobial Resistance on 16 September 2016.
In response to the Review, we have committed to work closely with different individual sectors to ensure that appropriate sector specific reduction targets are agreed by 2017 so that future reductions are greatest where there is most scope, and that they are underpinned by improvements which focus on encouraging best practice and responsible use of antibiotics.
This work aligns with the actions already set out in the Government’s Five-Year Antimicrobial Resistance Strategy, including improving the stewardship of existing antibiotics, improving infection prevention and control and optimising prescribing practice.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2015-11-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to change attitudes to personal health issues among men.
Jane Ellison
We recognise that men do not seek medical help as often as women, and their health can suffer as a result and that changing their behaviours could reduce premature death, illness and costs to society. The Department does not have a separate policy approach to men’s health as all policy subjects are expected to take into account equality issues as they are developed.
In 2013, Public Health England was established to protect and improve the nation’s health and to address inequalities, working with national and local government, the National Health Service, industry, academia, the public and the voluntary and community sector. Local authorities are responsible for assessing the current and future health needs of their local population and targeting of interventions to reduce health inequalities. We have also given local authorities the flexibility to innovate and tailor services to meet local individual and population needs.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kilclooney on 2015-12-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether it is their intention that the Common Travel Area between the UK and the Republic of Ireland would continue if the UK ceased membership of the EU.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), believes Britain’s best future lies within a reformed EU. He is focused on addressing the concerns of the British people and is confident that the right agreement can be reached.