Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Paula Sherriff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Paula Sherriff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paula Sherriff on 2016-07-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the implications of VM Langfords entering administration for the provision of patient transport services in Sussex.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    This is a matter for local commissioners.

    NHS England has confirmed that Coperforma, holder of the non-emergency Patient Transport Service (PTS) contract for Sussex, informed High Weald Lewes Havens Clinical Commissioning Group (HWLH CCG) on 16 June 2016 that a receiver had been appointed for VM Langfords – transport provider sub-contracted to deliver PTS in East and West Sussex. A number of South East Coast Ambulance Services (SECAmb) staff had been transferred to VM Langfords employment.

    HWLH CCG met with Coperforma on 17 June 2016 and was assured that a plan was already in place for additional transport capacity to mitigate any loss of capacity that this situation may cause.

    HWLH CCG is working closely with Coperforma and the unions (Unison and GMB) to work through the implications for ex SECAmb staff, to ensure the processes followed are in keeping with employment legislation and good practice and that the impacts on service delivery are kept to a minimum.

    There have been no discussions between Ministers in the Department and Sussex CCGs about PTS provider VM Langfords going into administration.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much coal the UK carbon fibre industry used in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

    Jesse Norman

    The table below gives the amount of coal used for non-power generating purposes:

    UK coal demand for non-electricity generating purposes(1) (thousand tonnes)

    2006

    10,156

    2007

    10,158

    2008

    10,577

    2009

    9,037

    2010

    9,827

    2011

    9,658

    2012

    9,141

    2013

    10,139

    2014

    10,021

    2015

    8,174

    Source: Digest of UK Energy Statistics (DUKES) table 2.4 available at

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/solid-fuels-and-derived-gases-chapter-2-digest-of-united-kingdom-energy-statistics-dukes

    BEIS does not hold data at that level. BEIS cannot disaggregate coal used by the carbon fibre industry from coal used by all industries.

    “

  • Lucy Powell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lucy Powell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lucy Powell on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, on what grounds she decided that the recently approved annexe to the Weald of Kent grammar school is in an area that is easily accessible to the community that the school serves.

    Edward Timpson

    The Weald of Kent School has set out its plans in expansion proposals. Pupils at the Sevenoaks annexe will attend the Tonbridge site at least once a week to attend a whole school assembly and additional lessons. The school will also operate a house system across the expanded school, regularly bringing students together on a range of curriculum projects. The length of the school day is a matter for the academy trust.

    The newly expanded school will better meet the needs of parents in the community that the school currently serves. Over 41% of pupils at the Tonbridge site already travel from the Sevenoaks area. The travel arrangements between the sites will use existing bus companies to transport pupils who live in Sevenoaks to the Tonbridge site. The proposal indicates that the journey time is approximately 17 minutes and no additional funding is being provided to the academy to cover the costs.

    The decision issued on 15 October 2015 was in respect of a proposal received on 14 September 2015. The Department can comment on the costs of external legal advice once we have the final costs bill.

    The school would not have the required capital funding to expand on this scale at the existing site.

  • Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2015-11-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 19 November (HL3374), what assessment they have made of the mechanisms that are available to passengers in order to bring pressure on franchised train operators to ensure that appropriate toilet facilities are provided.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Government is continually trying to improve passenger experience both on train and at station. Train operators have commitments in their franchise agreements for achieving improved levels of customer experience standards and accessibility, including appropriate toilet facilities.

    During the consultation phase of the franchise competition passengers and other stakeholder groups have the opportunity to contribute towards these specifications.

    During the life of the franchise, operators are measured against the national rail passenger survey scores which measures against the cleanliness of toilet facilities on trains and at stations.

    Above this during the life of the franchise, operators are encouraged to seek continuous improvement to their service offering which government supports through various funding opportunities.

  • Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many concurrent planning arrangements for children have been authorised in each of the last six years in each local authority.

    Edward Timpson

    I refer the Honourable Member to the answer to Written Question 19262, published on 14 December 2015, which is as follows:

    ‘Ofsted publishes local authority level information on the number of children in foster placements that are subject to concurrent planning. The information is available via the following links:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fostering-in-england-1-april-2012-to-31-march-2013

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fostering-in-england-1-april-2013-to-31-march-2014

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fostering-in-england-1-april-2014-to-31-march-2015’

    Data prior to 2013 is not available.

    “

  • Caroline Ansell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Caroline Ansell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Ansell on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with Network Rail on improved responsiveness for emergency repairs; and if he will make a statement.

    Claire Perry

    I have regular discussions with senior Network Rail and rail industry colleagues about the need to improve performance across the network, which includes improving the recovery time from incidents. I have been paying particular attention to performance on the Govia Thameslink Railway network, and response times are being reviewed with the operator and Network Rail colleagues in order to improve response times when possible.

  • Michael Dugher – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Michael Dugher – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Dugher on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many businesses have signed agreements with the Business Growth Service in each local authority area in the UK.

    Anna Soubry

    The attached table shows the number of businesses that have signed agreements with the Business Growth Service in each local authority area in the UK since the service launched in December 2014.

  • Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has for the successor body to Health Education England for the commissioning for non-medical education.

    Ben Gummer

    The Government, through Health Education England, will retain the responsibility for commissioning and funding the minimum numbers of clinical placements assessed as required to produce sufficient healthcare graduates for the National Health Service.

  • Steve Rotheram – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Steve Rotheram – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Rotheram on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent representations (a) his Department and (b) the Information Commissioner’s Office have received on the failure of organisations to register as data controllers with the Information Commissioner’s Office under the terms of the Data Protection Act 1998; and what steps (i) his Department and (ii) the Information Commissioner’s Office have taken to ensure that organisations (A) are compliant with such terms of the Data Protection Act 1998 and (B) pay their notification fees.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Data Protection Act 1998 requires every data controller who is processing personal information to register with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) unless they are exempt. The ICO’s website sets out the criteria for notification and provides guidance on the level of fee organisations should be paying. The ICO have also made it easier for organisations to notify and pay the fee by introducing online payments.

    At the end of 2015/2016 there were 441,000 data controllers registered with the ICO, which generated a total income of £18.3 million. Due to the very broad range of exemptions from the need to notify, and because these exemptions do not need to be actively claimed, there is no recognised figure for the number of notifiable data controllers in the UK. It is for data controllers to seek registration; the ICO periodically reminds organisations of the requirement to notify.

  • Tom Pursglove – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Tom Pursglove – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Pursglove on 2016-05-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 25 May 2016 to Question 37198, how many of the leaflets entitled Why the Government believes that voting to remain in the European Union is the best decision for the UK have been returned to her Department; and what the postage cost to the Government has been of such returns.

    Karen Bradley

    I refer the Hon Member to the Prime Minister’s response of 25th May 2016 [37198]. This information is not collated centrally by the Department.