The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2016-07-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many abortions (a) overall and (b) where Downs syndrome had been identified were carried out at each (i) NHS hospital, (ii) clinic and (iii) surgery in Lancashire in 2016.
Nicola Blackwood
Data for 2016 is not yet available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-10-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many colleges which were not recognised or listed have been shut down in each of the last three years; and how many such colleges are currently under investigation.
Joseph Johnson
The Government has clamped down on immigration abuse from poor quality institutions selling immigration rather than education. Since 2010, more than 920 institutions have been struck off the Tier 4 sponsors list.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bill Esterson on 2015-11-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions he has had on the statutory pubs code, and the Government’s policy on pubs, with people or bodies concerned with the pubs industry.
Mr Marcus Jones
Since I was appointed Community Pubs Minister on 20 May 2015, I have met with senior representatives from a broad range of bodies within the pubs industry. These include the British Beer and Pub Association, the Campaign for Real Ale, Punch Taverns, the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers, the British Institute of Innkeeping, the Perceptions Group and the Pubs Advisory Service. I have also met with my rt Hon Friend the Member for Halesowen and Rowley Regis (James Morris), and one of his constituents, to engage with the wide range of issues affecting the pub and brewing industry.
British pubs have always been at the heart of our local communities, and we are empowering people to preserve them, as well as other local landmarks and places of interest. On 11 September 2015, we took forward our Manifesto commitment by announcing the £1.5m Pub Loan Fund which will help community groups towards the cost of acquiring local pubs threatened with closure.
This is in addition to local people being able to nominate any local building or land they love as an ‘asset of community value’ and then, if it comes up for sale, having 6 months to raise the funds to bid to buy it. So far more than 800 pubs have been listed.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2015-11-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 29 October 2015 to Question 12715, what steps his Department plans to take to increase the number of (a) pupils from state-funded schools and (b) pupils from state-funded schools who receive free school meals who enter higher education.
Joseph Johnson
We have already taken significant steps to widen participation in higher education. In particular, from 2015/16, we have removed the cap on student numbers, enabling more people than ever before to benefit from higher education. We have also established a stronger framework with increased responsibility placed on providers to widen access. The Director of Fair Access has agreed 183 Access Agreements for 2016/17 containing an estimated £745m to support students from disadvantaged backgrounds – up from £404m in 2009/10.
The Green Paper Fulfilling our Potential: Teaching Excellence, Social Mobility and Student Choice, CM 9141 sets out additional steps the Government plans to take to increase the proportion of students from disadvantaged background entering higher education including through the new guidance that we plan to issue to the Director of Fair Access, and through the social mobility taskforce being set up by Universities UK.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Reynolds on 2016-01-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects the South East flexible ticketing programme to commence.
Claire Perry
The South East Flexible Ticketing programme is already under way. c2c and Govia Thameslink Railway already offer annual season tickets on smartcards. Abellio Greater Anglia, South West Trains and Southeastern will launch their products this year. Together, these five train operators cover 73% of the annual season ticket market.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Anderson on 2016-01-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2016 to Question 23662, if she will make an assessment of the risk of coal sourced by owners of power stations in the UK coming from countries where safety and labour standards in mining are poor.
Andrea Leadsom
Decisions on where to source coal are a commercial matter for the owners of coal-fired power stations. Contracts for the purchase of coal are awarded to individual mining companies, not countries. The majority operators of power stations in the UK are members of BetterCoal, an industry-led initiative which is taking action to promote responsible coal mining and has established a set of ethical, social, and environmental principles which companies in the supply chain are expected to align with.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-02-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will issue a response to EDM 1011, Fire at Mzuzu University, Malawi.
Mr Nick Hurd
The UK recognises the terrible loss for Mzuzu University and academia in Malawi caused by the fire in December 2015 which destroyed the university library and its stock of 45,000 books.
We commend the Scotland Malawi Partnership for coordinating efforts in Scotland to appeal for donations for the restocking and rebuilding of the library. Officials have met with the Scotland Malawi Partnership and the Mzuzu University Vice Chancellor to discuss possible funding opportunities. It is encouraging that Scottish Universities are again demonstrating Scotland’s unique people to people approach to supporting Malawi at a time when the country is also facing a humanitarian crisis and funding priorities are in strong competition.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bernard Jenkin on 2016-03-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether it is the Government’s policy to oppose the proposals of the EU Competition Directorate to introduce a block exemption from state aid regulations for EU ports.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The EU Competition Directorate recently launched an initial public consultation on the proposed extension of the General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER) to ports and airports. The Government is currently studying the proposals and seeking the views of stakeholders before responding by the consultation deadline of 30 May 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Antoinette Sandbach on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what work HS2 Ltd has carried out in Eddisbury constituency since 17 July 2013 on mapping unmapped (a) pipework, (b) brine wells and (c) other brine extraction infrastructure.
Mr Robert Goodwill
No field mapping has been carried out except two successive (2014 and 2015) HS2 LiDAR surveys of the route in Cheshire.
HS2 Ltd has commissioned from a mining engineer (in consultation with the Cheshire Brine Subsidence Compensation Board) a study of the saltfield, including the location of known brine wells.
HS2 Ltd has consulted with brine/salt extraction stakeholders in the Eddisbury constituency, including Tata Chemicals Europe Ltd. and Compass Minerals UK Ltd.
Following a route decision in autumn 2016 HS2 Ltd will begin production of a full Environmental Impact Assessment.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2016-05-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether (a) he and (b) ministers of his Department have met with the new Welsh Government to discuss the steel crisis.
Anna Soubry
My Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills spoke with the First Minister about the steel crisis following his re-appointment on 18 May. He also wrote to the new Minister for Economy and Infrastructure on 23 May congratulating him on his appointment and extending a joint request from both myself and the Secretary of State for an early discussion on the situation in the South Wales steel industry.