Tag: Parliamentary Question

Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2016-04-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what metrics he plans to use to measure the contribution which the apprenticeship levy will make to economic productivity.

Nick Boles

We will evaluate the apprenticeship levy contribution to productivity as part of our wider programme of apprenticeships evaluation. This includes assessing what impact on apprenticeship starts and quality the levy has had, as well as evaluating wage returns of those who have completed apprenticeships. The research paper cited below outlines current evidence on, and the associated methodology used to measure, the economic value of apprenticeships.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-education-measuring-the-net-present-value-in-england

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01/01/2023
Lord Smith of Finsbury – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Smith of Finsbury on 2016-06-13.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to reduce the delays that occur between the announcement of a Heritage Lottery Fund grant being made and permission to start being given to the recipient organisations.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

The Heritage Lottery Fund work closely to support grant recipients in meeting the essential requirements prior to works starting. The HLF are not aware of a general problem with delays around the existing permission to start process, though timings can vary.

01/01/2023
Tania Mathias – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tania Mathias on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to restrict the amount spent by local authorities on legal support and advice in special educational needs and disability tribunals.

Edward Timpson

It is up to local authorities to decide how best to spend their Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) budgets, based on an analysis of local need. The reforms in the Children and Families Act 2014 were designed to make the SEND system less adversarial for parents and young people, as well as for local authorities. The process of Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment and plan development is designed to be collaborative, meaning that most disagreements should be resolved early on. Where disagreements persist, we have introduced a requirement to consider mediation, which has often proved effective in reducing the need to make an appeal to the SEND Tribunal. For example, in 2015, 75% of disagreements over EHC plans for which mediation sessions were held did not result in a Tribunal appeal in that year.

The SEND Tribunal aims to be facilitative and accessible, so that it should not be necessary for either parents or local authorities to employ legal support when making or defending an appeal. No additional weight is given to evidence because it is presented by a lawyer and many parents and local authorities successfully pursue their case without legal representation.

The Department is currently conducting a Review of Disagreement Resolution Arrangements, as required by the 2014 Act, which will report to Parliament by 31^st March 2017. The Review is looking at how the system of disagreement resolution is working for children, young people and their families, which includes enquiring about the costs incurred by both families and local authorities.

01/01/2023
David Crausby – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Crausby on 2016-10-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions he has had with the Royal British Legion on the Count Them In campaign.

Mark Lancaster

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) continues to support the aspiration of the Royal British Legion’s (RBL) ‘Count Them In’ campaign to include a veteran’s marker in the 2021 census to provide information to better support the commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant. In June this year I wrote to John Pullinger, the National Statistician, to request that the position set out in the Office for National Statistics’ (ONS) response to the census consultation was revisited. Following discussions this has been agreed and further work is being taken forward. The ONS and the MOD have established a working group to review the decision not to record veterans in the 2021 census. To date it has met six times. The working group is developing a number of themes which have allowed us to develop a good understanding of each other’s needs, including those of other Government Departments, Local Authorities and the charitable sector. The latest ONS statement on this issue can be found at the following address: https://www.ons.gov.uk/census/censustransformationprogramme/consultations/the2021censusinitialviewoncontentforenglandandwales/updateonmeetinginformationneedsonthearmedforcescommunityveterans The ONS will be inviting key stakeholders from across Government, Local Authorities and the charitable sector to a meeting this autumn to seek their further input on this issue. In addition, the MOD and the ONS met with the RBL in July this year to explain the work that both Departments are taking forward.

01/01/2023

Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2015-11-05.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which regulations his Office introduced as a result of EU legislation in (a) 2013, (b) 2014 and (c) 2015 to date; which regulations his Office expects to implement as a result of EU legislation in (i) 2016 and (ii) 2017; and what estimate he has made of the cost of each such regulation to the (A) public purse and (B) private sector.

Matthew Hancock

No regulations were introduced by the Cabinet Office as a result of EU legislation in 2013 and 2014.

So far in 2015 the Cabinet Office has introduced the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 which have estimated net annual savings of £3.6 Billion. No further regulations arising from EU legislation are planned for introduction in 2015.

Looking ahead to 2016 two regulations are expected to be implemented by the Cabinet Office as a result of EU legislation. These are the Utilities Contract Regulations and Concessions Contract Regulations.

Details of all the estimated costs to the Public Purse and Private Sector are provided in the table below:

Year	Title of Regulation	Cost to Business	Cost to Public Purse
2013	None
2014	None
2015	Public Contracts Regulations 2015	£3.6Billion saving
2016	Utilities Contract Regulations	£0.14M	£0.09M
	Concessions Contract Regulations	£0.3M	£0.85
2017	None

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01/01/2023

Mike Weir – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Weir on 2015-12-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will assess the expected cost to UK consumers who elect to cancel booked package holidays to Sharm el Sheikh and other destinations in the Middle East scheduled to depart during the months of December 2015 and January 2016 where such cancellation is not penalty-free; and if he will make it his Department’s policy to issue travel advice which will allow penalty-free cancellation for travel booked to depart during those months.

James Duddridge

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office travel advice provides information and advice so that British nationals can make their own better informed decisions about foreign travel. The Department for Business Innovation and Skills is responsible for regulation of the travel industry and it is not the role of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to intervene in the regulation of this market. British nationals who have booked package holidays should contact their travel company if they wish to cancel their booking. These holidays will be subject to the terms and conditions of the booking and the provisions of the Package Travel Regulations, which cover among other things changes between the time of booking and the time of travel. Where the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has advised against travel since a holiday has been booked, such as Sharm el Sheikh, it is unlikely that a penalty will be incurred.

01/01/2023
David Hanson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2016-01-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many incidents of attempted suicide there were in prisons in each of the last five years.

Andrew Selous

The national statistics on safety in custody use the category of self-harm incidents, defined as “any act where a prisoner deliberately harms themselves irrespective of the method, intent or severity of any injury”. They do not include a separate category of “attempted suicide”, because the intent of the prisoner is often unknown. Some incidents are more likely to result in a fatality than others, but the point at which a self-harm incident becomes an attempted suicide is unclear.

Summary statistics on self-harm in prison custody are published quarterly, and the latest annual figures, for the ten years to June 2015, can be found in Table 3 of the Safety in Custody statistics bulletin available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/472712/Safety-in-custody-summary-q2-2015.xls

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01/01/2023
Lord Freyberg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Freyberg on 2016-02-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bridges of Headley on 26 January (HL5030), what historic data they hold on cancer registrations and deaths in England over the past 15 years owing to: (1) C50, malignant neoplasm of breast, (2) C61, malignant neoplasm of prostate, (3) C33-C34, malignant neoplasm of trachea, bronchus and lung, (4) C18-C20, malignant neoplasm of colon and rectum, (5) C43, malignant melanoma of skin, (6) C82-C85, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, (7) C67, malignant neoplasm of bladder, (8) C64, malignant neoplasm of kidney, except renal pelvis, (9) C91-C95, leukaemia, (10) C25, malignant neoplasm of pancreas, (11) C54-C55, malignant neoplasm of corpus uteri and uterus, part unspecified, (12) C15, malignant neoplasm of oesophagus, (13) C00-C14, malignant neoplasm of lip, oral cavity and pharynx, (14) C56-C57, malignant neoplasm of ovary and other unspecified female genital organs, (15) C16, malignant neoplasm of stomach, (16) all other neoplasms, (17) tumours listed in (1) to (5) in total, and (18) tumours listed in (6) to (15) in total.

Lord Bridges of Headley

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

01/01/2023
Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-02-29.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, of the schools that had their admission arrangements objected to in (1) 2014, and (2) 2015, what was the average number of School Admissions Code breaches found in each case.

Lord Nash

In 2013/14 the total number of objections upheld and partially upheld was 99, out of 161 determinations published. In 2014/15 the number was 159, out of 260 determinations published.

We do not record data on the number of breaches found in individual cases.

01/01/2023
Lord St John of Bletso – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord St John of Bletso on 2016-03-23.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have, in conjunction with the UN, to assist in rebuilding infrastructure in South Sudan.

Baroness Verma

South Sudan is in the midst of a protracted humanitarian crisis affecting millions, and the UK is prioritising support which saves lives and protects the most vulnerable. The UK works with the UN and others on small infrastructure projects that support humanitarian efforts, such as the building/maintenance of roads, airstrips and camps; and projects that are driven by local communities, such as building of water points, dykes, bridges and schools. Peace and security, including the overdue formation of the transitional government of national unity, are essential for progress on the development of South Sudan. The UK is playing an active role in encouraging the full implementation of the peace agreement, and continues to call for the immediate return of Opposition leader Riek Machar to Juba in order to facilitate this.

01/01/2023