The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mary Macleod on 2014-04-29.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many families in (a) London, (b) Hounslow Borough and (c) Brentford and Isleworth constituency, will benefit from the Government’s tax free childcare policy.
Nicky Morgan
The information requested is not available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Tami on 2014-05-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what procedures his Department has put in place to ensure that mail received by recorded delivery at jobcentres is logged and dealt with immediately; and what assessment he has made of whether such procedures are carried out across all jobcentres.
Mike Penning
All DWP mail, whether recorded delivery or otherwise, is opened and distributed to the appropriate office for action from one of the 2 Mail Opening Units. The only exceptions being items identified “OFFICIAL–SENSITIVE”, “SECRET”, or “TOP SECRET” and providing a named individual is included.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2014-05-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answers of 28 April 2014, Official Report, columns 594-5W, on official visits, whether any of the six received requests for special mission status were refused (a) by reference to duties to prosecute or extradite persons alleged to have committed or to have ordered to be committed grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention or other international crimes and (b) on other human rights grounds.
Mark Simmonds
None of the six requests for special mission status to which I referred in my answer to the House of 28 April 2014, Official Report, columns 594-5W, were refused. After consenting to the visits as special missions, two of the visits were subsequently cancelled by the country making the request.
As I noted in my previous answer, in view of the confidentiality of diplomatic exchanges, we have no plans to make public further details about requests that have been granted or refused. But if those applying for special mission status wish to announce the details of their visit to the UK, they are of course at liberty to do so.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Byles on 2014-05-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2014, Official Report, column 805W, on renewable energy, what the standard period is for stakeholders to be given to respond to a Government consultation.
Michael Fallon
The amount of time required for stakeholders to respond to a Government consultation will depend on the nature and impact of the proposal and might typically vary between 2 and 12 weeks.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2014-05-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 28 April 2014, Official Report, column 461W, on NHS: insolvency, when he plans to place in the Library the minutes of the meeting on 2 April 2014.
Jane Ellison
We plan to place a final copy of the minutes of the meeting on 2 April in the Library in due course, once the terms of reference for the Committee have been finalised.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many personnel were in the Sea Cadets in Northern Ireland on 1 January 2014.
Anna Soubry
On 1 January 2014 there were 257 Sea Cadets in Northern Ireland, 22 of whom were Royal Marine Cadets.
In addition there were 157 Adult Volunteers.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dominic Raab on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2014, Official Report, column 791W, on fossil fuels: imports, how much in thousand tonnes of (a) oil and (b) gas was (i) exported from and (ii) imported to the UK in 2012 and 2013.
Michael Fallon
Data on gas trade in units of thousand tonnes is not available, the standard unit of measurement is GWh.
In 2012, the UK imported 53,763 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 534,987 GWh of gas and exported 28,535 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 131,711 GWh of gas.
In 2013, provisional figures show that the UK imported 50,311 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 523,506 GWh of gas and exported 30,382 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 99,582 GWh of gas.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bill Wiggin on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make it his policy that a proportion of any future underspend within the NHS is allocated to nurses’ pay.
Dr Daniel Poulter
The Department has made available in subsequent years the underspends delivered by local National Health Service organisations, but is not prescriptive on how those organisations use that funding.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, in which local authorities 30 per cent or more pupils entitled to free school meals are not claiming them; and what steps he is taking to improve the take-up of free school meals.
Mr David Laws
The Department for Education routinely collects information on pupils who are both eligible for and claiming free school meals. This information is published in the ‘Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics, January 2013′ Statistical First Release[1]. Identifying pupils who are eligible for but not claiming free school meals is more difficult.
The Department has published a research paper – ‘Pupils not claiming free school meals: 2013′[2] – which presents estimates of the numbers and proportions of pupils who are entitled to receive free school meals but are not claiming. The paper compares registration rates for children aged between four and 15 and highlights regions and local authorities where under-registration rates are high. A table showing under registration rates by local authority can be found in the annex.
The Department has developed a free school meals Eligibility Checking System (ECS). The ECS enables local authorities to check very quickly and determine whether a parent can claim free school meals by linking benefits information from DWP, HMRC and the Home Office. It represents a significant achievement in reducing bureaucracy and cost for local authorities and encouraging more parents to sign up their children for a free school lunch. The ECS has been extended to allow parents to check their own eligibility, and to apply online, for free school meals. The new system reduces the time, stigma and bureaucracy previously associated with applications for free school meals.
Resources are also available from the Children’s Food Trust to help schools increase take-up of free school meals.[3]
[1]https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2013.
[2] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupils-not-claiming-free-school-meals-2013.
[3]http://www.schoolfoodtrust.org.uk/schools/resources/free-school-meals-matter-toolkit
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Heaton-Harris on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people died from cold-related causes in the winter of (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14.
Mr Nick Hurd
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.