Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Gordon Henderson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Gordon Henderson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Henderson on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the current scheme of discretionary top-up payments provided by the Macfarlane Trust to its beneficiaries will be removed as a result of the Government’s proposed changes to its scheme of support for people affected by contaminated blood.

    Jane Ellison

    The consultation on reforming the current payment schemes for those affected by HIV and/or hepatitis C through National Health Service-supplied blood/blood products closed on 15 April. The analyses of responses are still being considered by Ministers and no decisions on changes to the schemes have been taken. An announcement will be made in due course.

  • Vernon Coaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Vernon Coaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vernon Coaker on 2016-07-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, under what legislation prosecutions are brought against perpetrators of hate crime and racist abuse.

    Mike Penning

    Hate crimes are criminal behaviour and may be prosecuted in England and Wales using the full range of criminal offences. Sections 29 to 32 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 set out racially and religiously aggravated offences covering wounding, assault, damage, harassment (including stalking) and threatening/abusive behaviour which carry higher sentences than equivalent non-aggravated offences. Sections 18 to 23 of the Public Order Act 1986 contain offences of stirring up racial hatred and sections 29B to 29G contain offences of stirring up hatred on grounds of religion or sexual orientation. There is also an offence of racialist chanting at football matches in section 3 of the Football Offences Act 1991.

    Sections 145 and 146 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 make it an aggravating factor for the purposes of sentencing if at the time of committing the offence, or immediately before, the offender demonstrated hostility towards the victim on the basis of their race, religion, disability, sexual orientation or transgender identity or that the offence was motivated by hostility towards persons who had that characteristic. Under paragraph 5(2)(g) of Schedule 21 to the 2003 Act., murder motivated by hostility on the grounds of any of these characteristics attracts a life sentence with a 30 year starting point for the minimum term.

  • Alan Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Alan Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Brown on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 45332, what assessment he has made of the use of biomass for electricity production and its contribution to supporting the decarbonisation of the UK economy.

    Jesse Norman

    In 2015, bioenergy generated 29.3 TWh of electricity from 5.2 GW of capacity, up from 22.6TWh and 4.5GW in 2014[1].

    The contribution of sustainable biomass to decarbonisation formed part of the Impact Assessment for the Fifth Carbon Budget level, which determined that to the extent that feedstock is available, biomass could play a role not only in electricity generation but in industry, heating and transport.

    [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/547977/Chapter_6_web.pdf

    “

  • Caroline Ansell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Caroline Ansell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Ansell on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure the routine use by his Department of the family test; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Officials in my Department have liaised with Department of Work and Pensions as the lead department for the Family Test on cross government activity to embed and encourage routine use of the Test. This has included training officials on applying the Test, disseminating relevant learning materials and best practice.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2015-12-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they plan to take following the announcement that the government of Israel is to end its diplomatic links with the EU.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    It is not our understanding that the Government of Israel is ending its diplomatic links with the EU. The High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, discussed this issue with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on 30 November. Prime Minister Netanyahu clarified that Israel will continue to work with the EU on the Middle East Peace Process. In December 2009, the UK introduced voluntary guidelines to enable produce from Israeli settlements in the Occupied Territories to be specifically labelled as such. We therefore also welcome the EU’s ‘Interpretative notice on the indication of origin of goods from the territories occupied by Israel since June 1967’, a technical clarification of existing rules, adopted on 11 November.

  • Chris Law – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Chris Law – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Law on 2016-01-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of HM Revenue and Customs staff in Scotland are deemed to be within reasonable daily travel distance of the two proposed regional centres; and on what assumptions those estimates were based.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) Location Programme is the result of an extended period of consultation and deliberation. The Department has taken account of a number of criteria in reaching its decisions, including the quality of local transport links, the local labour market and future workforce supply, the cost of buildings and asset value, and the need to retain the staff and skills it needs to continue its transformation. These changes will reduce HMRC’s estates costs by around £100 million a year by 2025.

    HMRC’s modelling estimates that the majority of staff in Scotland live within Reasonable Daily Travel of Glasgow or Edinburgh. Reasonable Daily Travel is calculated in line with established HR policies and procedures. Every worker at HMRC will have a one-to-one meeting with their manager to discuss their individual circumstances.

    HMRC conducted high level People Impact and Equality Assessments to inform its planning. The Department plans to update these once discussions have been held with its staff.

    Activities of trade union representatives are governed by long-standing agreements with departments.

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 2 February 2016 to Question 24776, whether his Department has made or plans to make a financial contribution to Transport for London related to the decision to increase the cost of rail fares in London by the retail price index in 2016.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The 2015 Spending Review settlement provided to Transport for London already takes into account its likely income from rail fares in 2016 and subsequent years. The Department has no plans to make any further adjustment to TfL’s funding in respect of this matter.

  • Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the balance of trade between the UK and the rest of the EU was in (a) sugars and confectionery, (b) beverages and tobacco, (c) animal products, (d) cereals and preparations and (e) fish and fish products using the same definitions as in the presentation of information on page 15 of The process of withdrawing from the EU, in the last year for which data is available.

    Anna Soubry

    The trade balance between the UK and the rest of the EU in the above commodity groups in 2015 is given in the table below. These figures are sourced from HM Revenue and Customs’ Overseas Trade Statistics database and based on the same definitions as in the presentation of information on page 15 of ‘The process of withdrawing from the EU’.

    Commodity (HS commodity code)

    UK trade balance with the EU (£ million), 2015

    Sugars and confectionery (HS 17)

    -451

    Beverages and tobacco (HS 2009, 2201-08)

    -1,969

    Animal products (HS 01, 02, 1601-02)

    -3,465

    Cereals and preparations (HS 0407-10, 10, 1101-04, 1107-09, 19, 2102-06, 2209)

    -2,729

    Fish and fish products (HS 03, 0508, 051191, 150410, 150420, 1603-05, 230120)

    +84

    Source: HM Revenue and Customs Overseas Trade Statistics database

  • Lord Mawhinney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Mawhinney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mawhinney on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how often the physical and governance arrangements which ensure that patients can have private conversations with pharmaceutical staff, in the retail sector, are examined by or on behalf of the General Pharmaceutical Council and what percentage of examinations are unacceptable.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The Department does not hold this information. However, the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) has provided the following information.

    The GPhC undertakes inspections of all registered pharmacies in Great Britain. The vast majority of pharmacies currently receive a routine inspection every three to four years. Inspectors will, in addition, visit pharmacies to investigate concerns from members of the public or health professionals.

    Since November 2013 the GPhC has conducted 6,814 routine inspections of pharmacy premises to assess them against its standards. During every inspection GPhC inspectors seek evidence from the pharmacy team that standards relating to the privacy, dignity and confidentiality of patients and the public are met. These standards cover the storage of confidential and private information and the physical and governance arrangements for ensuring patients can have private conversations with pharmacy professionals.

    Of the 6,814 inspections that have been carried out by the GPhC since November 2013, in 421 (6.2%) cases pharmacy premises were found to have failed one or more of the above three standards:

    – 274 did not meet standard 1.7 (Information is managed to protect the privacy, dignity and confidentiality of patients and the public who receive pharmacy services);

    – 174 did not meet standard 3.2 (Premises protect the privacy, dignity and confidentiality of patients and the public who receive pharmacy services); and

    – 73 did not meet standard 5.3 (Equipment and facilities are used in a way that protects the privacy and dignity of the patients and the public who receive pharmacy services).

    When pharmacy premises have not met one or more of the standards, they are required by the GPhC to complete and implement an improvement action plan.

    In addition, the United Kingdom and Scottish Parliaments recently approved legislation which includes powers to issue an improvement notice or disqualify a pharmacy from the register for a failure to meet the standards. This will improve the GPhC’s ability to protect patients and improve the quality of the pharmacy services they receive.

    In circumstances where the GPhC finds a registered professional’s fitness to practise is called into question it will investigate and can bring proceedings against that individual.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government is taking to reduce the number of people with high blood pressure.

    Jane Ellison

    Public Health England (PHE) has established the Blood Pressure System Leadership Board to help drive improvements in the prevention, detection and management of high blood pressure. In 2014 the group published ‘Tackling High Blood Pressure: Evidence into action’, which sets out priority interventions required across the system and key commitments being made by various system partners.

    The NHS Health Check programme offers blood pressure testing to adults aged 40-74 years of age. Recent national evaluation of the programme demonstrated that one case of hypertension was diagnosed in every 27 people receiving a check.

    NHS England is working with partners to promote better Cardiovascular Disease outcomes, including improving the detection and management of conditions such as high blood pressure.

    PHE continues to work on reducing the risk factors of high blood pressure at a population level, through action to improve the diet of the nation and reducing inactivity.