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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Baroness Finlay of Llandaff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Finlay of Llandaff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Finlay of Llandaff on 2014-06-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to implement fully the Sunbeds (Regulation) Act 2010, including the secondary legislation and a programme to ensure that the public is aware of the dangers of sunbeds.

    Earl Howe

    The Sunbeds (Regulation) Act 2010 came into effect in 2011 to ensure sunbed businesses are properly supervised. In England some local authorities choose to enforce the under 18 ban enshrined within the primary legislationand the Department has published guidance to support them

    www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_125656

    The Government has recently received a report from the All Party Parliamentary Group on Skin which gives a number of recommendations including the introduction of secondary regulations in England and how the public can be fully informed. Government has noted the report and is currently considering how to progress the recommendations.

  • Priti Patel – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Priti Patel – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Priti Patel on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much public money from the Heritage Lottery Fund has been awarded to each local authority area for activities to commemorate the First World War.

    Mrs Helen Grant

    Since April 2010, across various programmes, the Heritage Lottery Fund has allocated over £56 million pounds to projects throughout the United Kingdom marking the First World War centenary. This includes awards from the First World War: Then and Now programme for smaller, community-led, projects. The breakdown of this funding by local authority area will be placed in the libraries of both Houses.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Roger Godsiff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to the Answer of 14 May 2014, Official Report, column 600W, on Bangladesh, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to make it compulsory for all UK clothing companies which use suppliers in Bangladesh to sign the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh.

    Mr Alan Duncan

    The Accord is an independent and legally binding agreement between unions and international companies that source their clothes from Bangladesh. As such it is not the Government’s place to compel companies to sign up. However as referred to in my previous response, I would very much encourage them to do so, and would encourage consumers to make their expectations clear to the retailers and brands from which they buy their clothes.

    In September 2013 the UK launched its action plan on business and human rights, laying out the expectations for business in line with the UN Guiding Principles. Signing up to the Accord not only demonstrates that companies are serious about their responsibilities but will also help them to ensure that workers in their supply chains are safe and treated properly.

  • John Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    John Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of children in poverty in (a) Glasgow North West constituency, (b) Glasgow, (c) Scotland and (d) the UK in each year until 2020.

    Esther McVey

    The Government does not produce forecasts of the number of children living in income poverty either locally or nationally. The number of children in poverty is dependent on a number of factors which cannot be reliably predicted, including the median income.

    The Government does not believe it is possible to accurately project child poverty to 2020. Poverty projections are rarely accurate. For example, IFS projections in October 2011 suggested the number of children in relative poverty would fall by 100,000 in 2010/11, whereas in fact it fell by 300,000.

  • Charlie Elphicke – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Charlie Elphicke – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlie Elphicke on 2014-06-09.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will assess the merits of introducing tax-rate floors to contracts involving Private Finance Initiative arrangements.

    Danny Alexander

    In December 2012, the Government launched Private Finance 2 (PF2). PF2 introduces significant reforms to the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) and gives a new approach to the delivery of public infrastructure. It is based on the outcomes of a wide call for evidence held across both the public and private sectors.

    The Government seeks to ensure that the UK tax system is competitive for all companies and that the UK is an attractive place to do business, while retaining proportionate anti-avoidance protection.

    A special purpose vehicle set up for the purposes of delivering a PFI project is no different from any other corporate entity and is therefore required to pay corporation tax in accordance with government rules.

  • Ivan Lewis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Ivan Lewis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ivan Lewis on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether officials in his Department consulted their Northern Ireland counterparts before publishing the draft Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2015.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Department for Transport officials worked closely with Northern Ireland colleagues throughout the Traffic Signs Policy Review. A meeting was held with the Devolved Administrations in February 2014, at which the proposed changes to the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions were presented.

    The Northern Ireland Executive has also been invited to respond to the public consultation on the draft regulations.

  • Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress he has made on Single Fraud Investigation Service; what plans he has for its roll out; and if he will make a statement.

    Esther McVey

    Progress has been made with regard to the implementation of the Single Fraud Investigation Service and this will commence from 1 July 2014.

  • 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 plans he has to ensure that local authorities in England pursue continuous improvement in the proportion of their eligible population being (a) offered and (b) taking up NHS health checks.

    Jane Ellison

    Public Health England (PHE) has set out a long-term aspiration of achieving an uptake of 75% and encourages areas to offer the NHS Health Check to 20% of the local population each year. In 2014-15, PHE has set a short term ambition of working towards achieving a 66% uptake and offers to 20% of the eligible population.

    PHE is developing an improvement offer, tailored to the needs of local areas, to support local action. PHE will also enable local authorities to overcome common issues that affect offers by actively disseminating learning on information governance and data flows.

    To support improvement in uptake PHE will work to inform the public’s understanding of the programme. In recent weeks PHE has launched NHS Health Check content on NHS Choices and is planning to extend this by developing a directory of services for England.

    Research and evaluation on applying behavioural insights to maximise uptake is also taking place. In the coming months PHE will support a network of local authorities to test and disseminate learning on the approaches that maximise uptake.

    The quarterly publication of both offer and uptake data brings transparency to local delivery of the programme. This enables local councillors, Healthwatch and the public to use existing local government mechanisms to scrutinise activity and encourage improvements in both performance and quality.

  • 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, what representations he has made to the new Egyptian President about freedom of religion.

    Mr William Hague

    The Government has been clear throughout recent events in Egypt, that the freedom of religious belief needs to be protected and that the ability to worship in peace is a vital component of a democratic society. I have not yet met President el-Sisi, but will look to work with him and the Egyptian Government to implement the rights contained in Egypt’s constitution, which includes protections for freedom of religious belief.

    Hugh Robertson, Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, discussed the situation faced by Coptic Christians and implications of the new constitution in a meeting with Bishop Yulios during his visit to Cairo in December.

  • Gloria De Piero – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Gloria De Piero – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gloria De Piero on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many (a) women and (b) men aged 24 and above applied for financial assistance for NVQ levels 3 and 4 in the first and second academic quarters in each year since 2008.

    Matthew Hancock

    The information is not readily available.