Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the Government plans to publish the outcome of its consultation on capping the fees charged to consumers by claims management companies.

    Sir Oliver Heald

    Information on the number of people who have lost more than 25 per cent of their financial claims compensation to the claims management company (CMC) handling their claim is not held centrally.

    Our priority is to protect consumers who choose to use CMCs. We have consulted on proposals to cap the level of fees that CMCs providing financial claims services can charge consumers. These proposals aim to help consumers get more of the compensation due to them. We are carefully considering the consultation responses and the Government will publish its response in due course.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that young women attend screening for cervical cancer.

    Jane Ellison

    The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) advises Ministers and the National Health Service in all four countries about all aspects of screening policy. The UK NSC reviews its recommendations on a three year basis or earlier if any new peer reviewed evidence emerges.

    The UK NSC is currently reviewing the evidence on whether human papillomavirus testing as primary screening for cervical disease should replace the currently used cytology test and whether faecal immunochemical testing could be used as the primary screening marker in the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme. Public consultations on both reviews have just closed and the UK NSC is expected to make a recommendation to ministers later this month.

    The NHS Breast Screening Programme is currently carrying out a long-term trial to investigate extending current screening eligibility to women aged 47-49 and 71-73. Over two million women have taken part in a randomised control trial, with the impact on breast cancer mortality rates due to be reported in the early 2020s. The UK NSC will consider the research evidence when it is published.

    We are not aware of steps being taken by employers to enable staff to take time off work to attend cancer screening appointments. However, Macmillan has produced, “Your rights at work” an information leaflet on reasonable adjustments in the workplace for people who have or have had cancer.

    In 2011, the UK NSC recommended that bowel scope screening could be offered in addition to the homes testing kit as part of the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme. Currently 76% of bowel scope screening centres in England are operational, and the Secretary of State’s commitment is to have this programme rolled out to all screening centres in England by the end of 2016. Health Education England has commissioned a training pilot for non-medical endoscopists (NMEs) to provide accelerated training in certain diagnostics procedures, with the aim of providing additional screening capacity. The pilot will commence in January 2016. A framework has also been developed to help NMEs demonstrate that they have achieved the competency levels required for their role.

    The NHS Screening Programmes have a dedicated team who oversee education, training and stakeholder information. This involves working closely with Royal Colleges, Professional bodies, stakeholder groups, NHS England, Health Education England and the Public Health England campaigns team. A vast range of educational resources exist which are free to NHS staff and cover all screening programme plus the theory and practice of screening. The team is currently expanding the range of taught courses and e-learning resources to make learning more accessible. Accessible patient information is available to educate users of the service and enable informed choices regarding screening. This is complemented by a comprehensive set of material on NHS Choices regarding all 11 NHS Screening Programmes. Patient information is constantly updated and users are involved in the reviews and evaluation of all materials.

    To increase rates of cervical screening in young women, the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment programme has commissioned a £1 million study to determine which interventions are effective at increasing screening uptake amongst women who are receiving their first invitation from the NHS Cervical Screening Programme. The study began in November 2011 and reports can be expected in spring 2016.

    In addition, the Department of Health Behavioural Insight team is developing a trial to investigate the use of behavioural insights to optimise the content of the invitation letter for cervical screening.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent discussions she has had with Bombardier about that company’s plans for the number of jobs it provides in Northern Ireland.

    Mr Ben Wallace

    Northern Ireland Office Ministers regularly meet a range of businesses and business organisations from across Northern Ireland.

    The Northern Ireland economic pact recognised the importance of Bombardier as one of Northern Ireland’s largest private sector employers. The Government continues to work with Invest NI to deliver on the commitments contained in the economic pact which included providing research and development funding to Bombardier.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-01-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of Israel concerning the welfare of children in prisons in Israel run by G4S.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    While we have not had any discussions with the Israeli authorities concerning the welfare of children in specific prisons in Israel run by G4S, officials from our Embassy in Tel Aviv raised our concerns about the treatment of Palestinian minors in Israeli military detention with the Israeli Chief Military Prosecutor on 23 November 2015.

    We continue to push for further measures to ensure that international standards are upheld in regards to the treatment of Palestinian children detained.

  • Nigel Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Nigel Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Evans on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports his Department has received on the extent of radicalisation in the Palestinian Territories.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We condemn all violence and all incitement to commit violence. We are concerned by reports of radicalisation, which may, in turn, encourage violence in the region. We have seen reports referring to Hamas. Hamas must renounce violence, recognise Israel and accept previously signed agreements. We have also received reports on the role school textbooks play in this area. An extensive study, conducted by a joint Israeli and Palestinian research team in 2013, found the need for textbooks on both sides to do far more to promote a more positive portrayal of each other, reflecting the principles of co-existence, tolerance, justice and human dignity.

  • Baroness Crawley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Crawley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Crawley on 2016-03-01.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to match the initiative of the government of Germany in providing special counselling, care and other medical support to Yazidi women who have suffered sexual and physical abuse at the hands of Islamic State.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    In the last few years, the UK has led the world on tackling sexual violence in conflict, working with international partners such as the UN, EU and Red Cross. In the Middle East we are supporting vulnerable women and girls through our role in the international humanitarian relief effort. The more than £2.3 billion we are providing in response to these crises is the UK’s largest ever response to a single humanitarian crisis.

    We recognise the plight faced by vulnerable women and girls in the region, and particularly those women, including Yazidis, who have escaped following enslavement by Daesh. That is why we have funded the establishment of three community centres in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq which provide them with psychosocial and legal support, and the provision of two UN technical experts who will continue to improve the coordination of the humanitarian response to gender based violence in Iraq. Through the Iraq Humanitarian Pooled Fund we are also providing life-saving maternal and specialised support for escapees of Daesh terror.

    The British Government is also funding a project which aims to improve the documentation of sexual violence and other gender based cases in a victim sensitive way. We also co-sponsored the UN Human Rights Council Resolution mandating the UN to investigate and report on Daesh abuses.

    Ultimately, the only way to protect civilians, including Yazidi women, from Daesh is by defeating this terrible organisation, which in turn requires, amongst other things, ending the conflict in Syria. The UK has been at the forefront of these efforts. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), set out the Government’s comprehensive strategy for dealing with Daesh and the conflict in Syria in his response to the Foreign Affairs Committee on 26 November 2015.

  • Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will make it the policy of the Government that electricity customers across the UK should pay the same for electricity transportation.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Electricity network charges vary by region and reflect the costs of running the network in that area and the number of consumers that those costs are spread over. The Government does not plan to move to national network charging, as the current cost reflective approach helps to ensure efficient use of the network and keeps overall costs down for bill payers across Great Britain. In contrast, national pricing risks an overall increase in network costs by weakening each network company’s local accountability to its customers, as well as making charges less transparent. On 23 October 2015, Ofgem published a report on the regional differences in network charges, which found no compelling case from a regulatory perspective to move to a national network charge. The report is available at:

    https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications-and-updates/regional-differences-network-charges.

    The Government will continue to consider any evidence that is presented.

    “

  • Baroness Gould of Potternewton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Baroness Gould of Potternewton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Gould of Potternewton on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government  how much funding, and what resources, are allocated to providing training for teachers and those working in the care and medical professions to recognise female genital mutilation.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    We are clear that Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a crime and it is child abuse. On 1 April we published updated multi-agency statutory guidance on FGM including information to help professionals understand the risk factors that they should be looking out for and what action they should take. In addition, free e-learning is available to all professionals, providing training on how to recognise and respond to FGM. To date the course has been completed by over 30,000 people. In addition, the Department of Health’s £3M FGM Prevention Programme is focused on improving the NHS response and includes free e-learning for healthcare professionals. A new mandatory reporting duty requiring regulated health and social care professionals and teachers to report known cases of FGM in under 18s to the police came into force on 31 October 2015. Professionals encountering instances of FGM in women over 18, or who believe that a girl or woman is at risk, should follow established safeguarding procedures. Anyone who is concerned that a girl or woman has undergone FGM or is at risk can contact the NSPCC FGM helpline. Reports to this helpline can be made anonymously. The Home Office’s Border Force plays a vital role in helping to identify and protect potential victims of FGM travelling to and from the UK. Border Force work with the police in protecting girls and young women at risk of FGM, including carrying out joint operations. FGM Protection Orders (FGMPOs) were fast-tracked for implementation last July and are being used to protect girls at risk of FGM, including those who may be taken abroad. Ministry of Justice data released on 31 March shows 32 FGMPOs were issued between July and December 2015.

  • Lord Warner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Warner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Warner on 2016-06-15.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Nash on 9 June (HL350), what discussions they have had with Birmingham City Council about the consequences if it decides not to create a Trust to deliver its children’s social care functions, in particular regarding whether the Secretary of State plans to issue a Statutory Direction requiring the Council to do so.

    Lord Nash

    The Department for Education is currently in discussions with Birmingham City Council about the development of a Trust model. The Council is planning to implement this model voluntarily. The Council is aware of the Department’s publically-stated policy that children’s social care services will be removed from the control of councils in cases of persistent or systemic failure, including through the use of a statutory direction where necessary. The Prime Minister made clear, in December, that poorly performing children’s services must improve or they will be taken over by experts. Therefore if the Council is judged to be inadequate by Ofsted again in the future, and does not continue to co-operate in voluntarily transferring its children’s social care services into a Trust, the Government will take action to enforce a Trust if required.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to conduct a comprehensive review of British foreign policy towards China, including consulting human rights NGOs, human rights lawyers, activists, religious communities and NGOs in China, exiled Chinese dissidents, journalists, academics and other experts, as recommended by the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Government’s policy towards China is set by the National Security Council. We have a strong relationship with China, as described in the Global Partnership announced at the State Visit of President Xi to the UK in 2015, and reiterated by the Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), during her recent visit to China. In addition to working with China to solve global challenges, and to develop strong trade, investment and people links, we also promote British values. To inform our policy, we maintain contact with a wide range of stakeholders, including human rights NGOs, journalists and academics. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Reading West (Alok Sharma) met Chinese human rights activists when he visited China in August.