Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Nicholas Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Nicholas Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Brown on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information her Department holds on the distribution of nitrogen and phosphates in the English river system since recent flooding; and what assessment she has made of the potential effect of that distribution on the natural environment.

    Rory Stewart

    The Environment Agency records the concentrations of nitrates and phosphates at thousands of locations across England. It monitors on either a monthly or quarterly basis over the course of the year. The January data should soon be ready for compilation. Many of the December samples were taken before the heavy rain so analysis of the data is still being carried out.

    Heavy rainfall events, such as those experienced in the recent floods, generally cause an initial flush of nutrients from agricultural land and urban drainage systems to rivers.This causes an increase in river nutrient concentrations which then falls away due to dilution by high river flows.During floods, large amounts of nutrients are washed down rivers into coastal waters. If this occurs in summer it can trigger algal blooms, feeding on the nutrients. In winter, the effects are not generally significant as the reduced sunlight and colder water temperatures mean that algae do not grow.

  • Baroness Hodgson of Abinger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Hodgson of Abinger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hodgson of Abinger on 2016-02-22.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of long-term trends in the prevalence of autism in the UK.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The number of children, young people and adults diagnosed with autism by the National Health Service is not collected centrally. Latest figures from the School Census (2015) state that there were 90,775 pupils with an autistic spectrum disorder at state funded schools and non-maintained special schools in England. This has increased from a total of 56,250 in 2010 who were recorded as having a primary need of autism, but it is not directly comparable to the 2015 figures because of a change in collection methodology. Local authority areas provide information for Public Health England’s annual self-assessment exercise on implementing the Autism Strategy. This includes the number of adults receiving an autism diagnosis but because information is submitted on a voluntary basis a complete total for England is not available.

    The Department has discussed with NHS England the difficulties that people on the autistic spectrum can have in getting an appropriate diagnosis and support in a timely manner. NHS England has commenced a programme to visit clinical commissioning groups to identify and share good practice in accessing autism diagnosis, and look at possible barriers. The Department is funding the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services to support this work. NHS England will complete a report on this by the end of April 2016.

    The Department is also encouraging the autism third sector to work together and the four charity representatives on the Cross Government Autism Programme Board, which oversees the implementation of the Autism Strategy, gave presentations at the meeting on 18 February on work they are doing to increase public awareness. The charities are the National Autistic Society, the Autism Alliance UK, Autism Plus and Ambitious about Autism. The Autism Alliance UK is also being funded by the Department to undertake work with national and local organisations, to make reasonable adjustments to services and to train staff to be aware of what autism can mean to individuals who have the condition and their families.

    The Health and Social Care Information Centre’s publication Estimating the Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Conditions in Adults – Extending the 2007 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey (APMS) gave the overall prevalence of autism in England as 1.1% (95% confidence interval 0.3% to 1.9%). Among adults with learning disabilities living in private households whose learning disability was sufficiently severe that they could not have taken part in the 2007 APMS, the prevalence of autism was 35.4% (95% confidence interval 24.7% to 46.2%). Among adults with mild or severe learning disabilities living in communal care establishments, the prevalence of autism was 31% (95% confidence interval 23.9% to 38%). Detailed supporting information regarding the underlying data and how figures have been derived is found within the detail of the report, a copy of which is attached.

    The APMS was repeated in 2014 and findings are scheduled to be published in September 2016.

  • Luke Hall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Luke Hall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luke Hall on 2016-03-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many patients in (a) Ashworth, (b) Broadmoor and (c) Rampton high security psychiatric hospitals received personal independence payment between 2012 and 2015; and what the average weekly payment of that benefit was to such recipients.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The information requested is not readily available, and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-04-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of claims for universal credit were made online in each year since that benefit was introduced.

    Priti Patel

    A year by year breakdown of the information requested is not available for publication. We can say that since its introduction, around 90% of Universal Credit claims have been made online.

  • Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2016-05-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what military support has been provided to the government of Ethiopia in the last five years; what such support he plans to provide in the next five years; and whether the UK currently provides training for Ethiopian security or military personnel.

    James Duddridge

    Ethiopia is one of the world’s largest peacekeeping troop contributors, heavily engaged in the fight against Al Shabaab in neighbouring Somalia which is vital to build stability in the region and to UK interests. The UK maintains a Defence relationship with the Ethiopian Ministry of National Defence, focused on education and training in non-combat areas. Over the past five years that has been centred on assisting in the setting up of the Ethiopian Peace Support Training Centre, and providing courses that give members of the Ethiopian military an improved range of non-combat skills as they serve on regional peace support operations. We have run a successful programme of English language training, delivered by the British Council, and a Masters course in Security Sector Management, for students from across the Eastern Africa region. We have provided a small number of places to Ethiopian military students on courses in the UK.

    The importance of good governance, accountability and respect for human rights is central to this programme of engagement. Over the next five years, we will continue to focus on helping Ethiopia to develop its capability to conduct peace support operations in the region, and continue to encourage improved governance and accountability within the security sector.

  • Lord Scriven – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Scriven – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Scriven on 2016-07-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what legislation currently governs the retention of facial custody images.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    I apologise that I did not answer Parliamentary Question HL905 on 12th July. Due to administrative error this question was grouped with HL906 but only one answer was provided. The use and retention of facial custody images is governed by the Code of Practice on the Management of Police information (MOPI), guidance contained within the College of Policing’s Authorised Police Practice (APP) and the Data Protection Act 1998.

  • Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to increase transparency in mental health service block contracts.

    Nicola Blackwood

    In line with the principle of parity of esteem between all health services, NHS England together with NHS Improvement are supporting providers and commissioners of adult and older people’s mental health services to move away from block contracts and implement more transparent payment approaches. Two new payment options that providers and commissioners can choose between are a capitated payment approach or an episode of treatment (year-of-care) payment approach.

  • Nusrat Ghani – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nusrat Ghani – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nusrat Ghani on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the (a) implications for his policies of the recent decision by the European Court of Justice on travel from home to work and (b) potential effect of that decision on the application of the Working Time Directive to care and support workers.

    Ben Gummer

    The Government is carefully considering the implications of the decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), which was published on the 10 September 2015. The ruling passed into United Kingdom law on the date it was published.

    Employers are responsible for ensuring that service rotas are designed and staffed appropriately and are in accordance with the Working Time Regulations and findings made by the CJEU.

  • Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-12-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will call for the release or charging of Can Dündar and Erdem Gul of CNN Turk, arrested in connection with alleged offences in May; and whether they are making representations to the government of Turkey about the recent arrests of seven teachers and three others connected with Gülen schools in Manisa province.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We continue to monitor specific cases and regularly underline the importance of freedom of expression and all fundamental freedoms as part of our broader dialogue with the Turkish government. Our Ambassador to Turkey highlighted his concerns about the number of journalists detained in Turkey, including Mr Dündar and Mr Gül, in his public blog released on International Human Rights day. We welcomed the EU Commission’s Annual Progress Report on Turkey, released on 10 November, which highlighted the need for further reforms from Turkey in these and other areas. Freedom of expression must be respected and all media outlets must be allowed to report freely without intimidation.

  • Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the cost to the NHS of alcohol misuse in each of the last five years.

    Jane Ellison

    Figures of the cost to the National Health Service of alcohol misuse for each of the past five years is not available. The most recent estimate from 2014 is that alcohol costs the NHS around £3.5 billion per annum(1), just under half of which is due to alcohol related inpatient admissions to hospital.

    (1)Source: “Alcohol and drugs prevention, treatment and recovery: why invest?”, Public Health England, http://www.nta.nhs.uk/uploads/why-invest-2014-alcohol-and-drugs.pdf

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