Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Tracey Crouch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tracey Crouch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tracey Crouch on 2014-04-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect on NHS service provision for seriously ill children and their families of the specialist senior nurses posts funded by the charity Well Child.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    We have not made any central assessment of this role. We are aware of the valuable work which Well Child does, and we were able to support Well Child with a grant in 2010-11 from the £19 million we made available for funding local schemes to support children’s palliative care services.

    We understand that Well Child funds each nurse for a period of three years after which time the individual National Health Service health provider commits to continue the post. Each nurse is employed and managed by the local healthcare trust in which they work and therefore it would seem that the providers would be best placed to comment on the impact they have made.

  • Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2014-06-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the marine aggregate industry.

    Lord De Mauley

    The UK Marine Policy Statement (MPS) is the framework for preparing Marine Plans and taking decisions affecting the marine environment. The MPS sets out the policy objectives for key activities taking place in the marine environment. This includes an assessment of marine aggregate resources, potential impacts from extraction activities and issues for consideration by decision-makers. Within English waters marine aggregate extraction activities are regulated by the Marine Management Organisation.

    Government, regulators, The Crown Estate and the British Marine Aggregate Producers Association (BMAPA) have collaborated on an extensive programme of research (over £25 million in ten years) into understanding and minimising the environmental impacts of aggregates dredging. Following the completion of that programme BMAPA and The Crown Estate recently commissioned and published Aggregate Dredging and the Marine Environment – an overview of recent research and current industry practice. The report is available on The Crown Estate website at www.thecrownestate.co.uk

    The marine aggregate industry has and continues to engage constructively with Government and regulators in developing marine plans and licensing policy and Marine Conservation Zones.

  • Madeleine Moon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Madeleine Moon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Madeleine Moon on 2014-04-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the online system for members of the public to compare hospitals on the basis of safety indicators will include information on cases in which patients with conditions such as Parkinson’s have not received their medication on time; and if he will make a statement.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    We are working with NHS England to prepare for the publication on NHS Choices of an extended set of patient safety indicators later this year. These indicators are being gathered together in a manner that will allow patients to compare local hospitals on the basis of a more rounded picture of safety performance than has been previously available in one place. The initial focus of this presentation will be on indicators that are relevant to the general population of hospital inpatients and for which information is available. There is not currently, to our knowledge, a suitable source of data regarding delayed medication for those being treated for diseases such as Parkinson’s.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Jim Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 11 June 2014, Official Report, column 213W, on apprenticeships, if he will make it his policy to collect information centrally on how many individuals who started an apprenticeship in the 2012-13 academic year were existing employees or new employees.

    Matthew Hancock

    Information will be collected via the Individualised Learner Record for the 2013/14 academic year onwards on the length of time a learner has been with their employer prior to starting their apprenticeship.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Alex Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2014-04-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what powers advocates will have during the pilot advocate scheme.

    Karen Bradley

    In January 2014 the Home Office announced proposals to trial specialist,
    independent advocates for trafficked children which is due to begin this
    summer. This trial forms part of the Government’s work to eradicate modern day
    slavery and as such there are no plans for this trial to be extended to
    unaccompanied children.

    The Child Trafficking Advocate will be fully independent from the local
    authority, but will need to work with the existing structures around the Child
    Trafficking Victim, such as children’s services, education, criminal justice
    system and immigration system.

    The advocate role is intended to deliver the best outcomes for children. The
    advocate’s role will include the following activities but this is not an
    exhaustive list and we expect the advocate to respond to the specific needs of
    the child.

    • being a consistent point of contact for the Child Trafficking Victim;
    • assisting the local authority to assess the needs of the Child Trafficking
    Victim as a victim of trafficking, thereby promoting the safety and wellbeing
    of the Child Trafficking Victim (in particular in light of the risk of
    re-trafficking);
    • making recommendations for referrals to other services (e.g. mental health
    services) to ensure the Child Trafficking Victim receives educational, medical,
    practical and legal support they need and deserve;
    • accompanying the Child Trafficking Victim to certain meetings – e.g. with an
    immigration lawyer;
    • supporting the Child Trafficking Victim in any age assessment process;
    • supporting the Child Trafficking Victim in overcoming language and cultural
    barriers;
    • supporting witnesses through the criminal justice system;
    • supporting looked after children and children in need through the care
    system, in particular in safety planning, age assessment and future planning;
    • assisting the local authority to plan for the Child Trafficking Victim’s
    future and receive any compensation that they may be entitled to;
    • helping prevent the Child Trafficking Victim from facing further exploitation
    or harm from traffickers (and the risks of going missing);
    • providing advice on immigration, criminal justice and welfare matters to the
    Child Trafficking Victim and arranging effective legal representation;
    • involvement in the key decisions relating to the Child Trafficking Victim
    (but final decisions would remain the responsibility of the local authority or
    Home Office, where relevant).

    The Home Office is commissioning an independent evaluation of the trial which
    will report six months after the trial commences. The evaluation will include
    the terms of reference for the trial.

  • Lucy Powell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lucy Powell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lucy Powell on 2014-06-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that childcare providers receive payments from National Savings and Investments on time.

    Nicky Morgan

    On the 23 May the Government published a further consultation on the delivery of childcare accounts within Tax-Free Childcare. The consultation will be open until 27 June and the Government will consider the responses alongside those to the first consultation before it makes its decision on the provision of childcare accounts.

  • Andrew Turner – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Andrew Turner – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Turner on 2014-04-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum seekers there were, by country of origin, in each of the last five years.

    James Brokenshire

    Figures for asylum applications for main applicants, by nationality, from 2009 to 2013 are published in Table as_01 (Asylum data tables Volume 1) in the release Immigration Statistics.

    The number of asylum applications from main applicants pending an initial decision, by nationality, for (a) more than one year and (b) more than five years, as at the end of 2013, can be found in the table," Asylum application from main applicants pending an initial decision as at 31/12/2013" which i will place in the House library.

    These figures are a subset of those also published in Table as_01 (Asylum data tables Volume 1) of the release Immigration Statistics.

    Figures for asylum applications from main applicants refused a grant of asylum, Humanitarian Protection, Discretionary Leave or other grants of leave, at initial decision, by nationality, from 2009 to 2013 are published in Table as_01 (Asylum data tables Volume 1) of the release Immigration Statistics.

    The latest release Immigration Statistics October to December 2013 is available from https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-october-to-december-2013 and from the Library of the House.
    Asylum data tables volume 1 is available from https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/283693
    /asylum1-q4-2013-tabs.ods

  • Karl McCartney – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Karl McCartney – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl McCartney on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of local authority funding for the staffing of libraries.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    Public libraries are funded and run by local authorities and it is for each local authority to determine at a local level how much they spend on libraries and how to manage and deliver the service, including decisions about expenditure on staffing.

  • Diana Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Diana Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2014-04-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been convicted of an offence contrary to section 3 of the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000 in each of the last four years.

    Jeremy Wright

    The number of offenders found guilty at all courts of the offences specified in the Sexual Offences Act 2003, the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000, the Indecency with Children Act 1960, the Sexual Offences Act 1967 and the Criminal Law Act 1977, in England and Wales, from 2008 to 2012 is provided in the attached tables.

    Please note that offences under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 sections 9 to 12, 14 to 19, 25 to 26, 47 to 50 provide data where the victim can be specifically identified as a child, whereas offences under sections 3, 4, 52 to 53, 57 to 59, 61 and 66 to 67, are not specific to the age of the victim.

    The tables do not include data for offences under section 5 of the Sexual Offences Act 1967, or under section 3 of the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000. These offences, along with section 54 of the Criminal Law Act 1977, were repealed by the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and there have been no convictions in the last four years.

    The number of offenders found guilty of offences under section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 was provided in answer to PQ 193582 and can be found at Official Report c638W, 1 April 2014. It is not possible to separate out the age of the victims of offences under section 2.

    Similarly, it is not possible to separate out the age of the victim of offences committed under sections 30 – 41 Sexual Offences Act 2003 from centrally held data. For data on offences under this legislation as a whole, I refer the honourable lady to the answer provided to PQ 193810, which can be found at Official Report column 136W, 7 April 2014.

    Section 20 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 deals with offences in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Statistics for these offences in Scotland are a matter for the Scottish Government, with those in Northern Ireland being a matter for the Department of Justice Northern Ireland

    Court proceedings data for England and Wales for 2013 are planned for publication in May 2014.

    The Government takes very seriously all matters relating to the sexual abuse of children and adults. Our laws in these areas are rightly robust and clear. The 2003 Act, which came into effect in May 2004, significantly modernised and strengthened the laws on sexual offences in England and Wales.

  • Steve McCabe – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Steve McCabe – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether special educational needs coordinators are able to request funds from his Department for extra assistance with SEN students in maintained schools.

    Mr Edward Timpson

    The Department for Education does not give funds directly to local authority maintained schools. Funds for extra assistance with students with special educational needs (SEN) come from schools’ budgets and, if the extra cost is more than £6,000 per year for an individual student, from local authorities in the form of top-up funding for the school. Local authorities can also give extra funding to schools with a disproportionate number of pupils with SEN. Special educational needs coordinators should therefore seek any additional funds required from the relevant local authority.