The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2016-02-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many medical staff left the NHS before reaching the retirement age in 2014-15.
Ben Gummer
The information is not available in the form requested.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Blenkinsop on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support his Department make available to people whose mandatory reconsideration and appeal takes longer than seven weeks to resolve.
Priti Patel
Claimants who are found fit for work through the Work Capability Assessment and wish to appeal may be entitled to claim either Universal Credit, Income Support or Jobseeker’s Allowance during the reconsideration period. Jobcentre Plus Work Coaches work with all such claimants to tailor a package of support commensurate with their individual needs.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cheryl Gillan on 2016-04-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what her policy is on the provision of free school transport for children who receive the higher rate of the mobility component of disability living allowance.
Nick Gibb
I refer my Rt Hon Friend to the reply given to written questions 31573 and 31574 on 22 March 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by William Wragg on 2016-06-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what representations she has received from (a) local authorities and (b) other bodies on pressures on school places due to immigration from (i) EU and (ii) non-EU countries.
Edward Timpson
I refer the Hon. Member to the answers provided for PQs 33106 and 33107 on 18 April 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Norman Lamb on 2016-09-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, for what reasons his Department did not include the eight key actions, recommended by Public Health England in its report, Sugar reduction: the evidence for action, published in October 2015, in the Government’s childhood obesity plan.
Nicola Blackwood
We launched Childhood Obesity: A Plan for Action on 18 August. Our plan focuses on actions that are likely to have the biggest impact on childhood obesity. The policies in the plan are informed by the latest research and evidence, including from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition report Carbohydrates and Health, Public Health England’s evidence package Sugar reduction: the evidence for action, other government departments, debates in this House and various reports from key stakeholders including the Health Select Committee.
We are confident that the measures we have announced will make a real difference to obesity rates. Though we are clear in our goals and firm in the action we will take, the launch of this plan represents the start of a conversation, rather than the final word.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Helic on 2016-10-18.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will offer support to the government of Liberia, in the context of the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative, to implement the recommendations of the United Nations Mission in Liberia report Addressing Impunity for Rape in Liberia; and what diplomatic action they plan to take to encourage other nations to provide assistance in this regard.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
We regularly raise sexual violence issues with the government of Liberia, UN agencies and diplomatic colleagues in Liberia. Our Ambassador will discuss this report with relevant parties over the coming weeks to assess where the UK might usefully support the government of Liberia and UN agencies to ensure those responsible for these crimes are held to account.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has assessed the necessary financial support required by local authorities to deliver a charging network for electric vehicles of the scale required to have an effect on local air quality.
Andrew Jones
The Government wants almost every car and van to be a zero emission vehicle by 2050 and is investing £500m between 2015 and 2020 to help deliver this. The long-term transition to ultra low emission vehicles can help improve local air quality, and will also lower UK greenhouse gas emissions and provide high value jobs and growth, but our modelling suggests that even very rapid uptake can have only a marginal impact on today’s air quality problems because of the time taken to turn over the vehicle fleet.
We are aware that a number of local authorities have been assessing electric car charging point requirements in air quality management areas.
The Government is considering future grid and chargepoint requirements as part of its planning for this transition. The UK already has the largest network of rapid chargepoints across Europe and over 6000 publically accessible chargepoints have been part-funded by the Government. We will continue to collaborate with industry to ensure that the UK’s infrastructure network meets the needs of electric vehicle drivers.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Randerson on 2015-12-03.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have plans to reform or strengthen the role of Traffic Commissioner.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The Department for Transport published its review of the role of the traffic commissioners this year. This recommends that we continue with the commissioners in their present form.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-01-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the situation in Madaya; and what assessment they have made of the likelihood that access will now be possible on a regular basis.
Baroness Verma
The UK has been at the forefront of the response to the Syria crisis. We have pledged over £1.1 billion, making us the second largest bilateral donor after the US.
On 11 January 2016, the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent confirmed that aid convoys of humanitarian assistance had arrived in the hard to reach town of Madaya, and the besieged areas of Foah and Kefraya. Further convoys have since arrived and more are planned. DFID funding to UN agencies is directly supporting the current convoys.
The UN and partners continue to do all they can on a daily basis to gain access to the 4.5 million Syrians in hard to reach and besieged areas. The UK supports UN agencies and its partners who are trying to secure such access and deliver aid in hard to reach and besieged areas of Syria
A wide range of constraints on humanitarian access exist, including continued hostilities, onerous bureaucratic requirements, and attempts by parties to armed conflict to intentionally block access. In the past year, only 10% of all requests submitted by the UN to the regime to access besieged and hard to reach areas have been approved and delivered. That is why the UK played a critical role in co-sponsoring and lobbying for UN Security Council Resolutions 2165, 2191 and 2258 which enable the UN to deliver aid into Syria without the consent of the regime. It is vital we maintain the pressure on the regime to let aid convoys in and to provide sustained, permanent and safe humanitarian access.
The desperate situation in besieged and hard to reach areas shows why we need the international community to come together at the London Conference for Syria and the Region on 4 February to support immediate needs and identify longer-term solutions to address the needs of those affected by the crisis, especially regarding jobs and education. We also hope the Conference will put pressure on the parties to the conflict by shining a spotlight on violations of international law and impediments to humanitarian access in Syria.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sue Hayman on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much funding the Government has allocated to the continued assessment of options for plutonium management in the financial years (a) 2016-17, (b) 2017-18 and (c) 2018-19.
Andrea Leadsom
In Spending Review 2015, the Government committed £11bn net funding to NDA over five years (in addition to its forecast commercial income). Government is satisfied with the provision made in the NDA’s budget to continue to make meaningful progress on the plutonium disposition programme.