Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • 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 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department takes to ensure that clinical commissioning groups monitor for unintended consequences to patients after implementing a restrictive prescribing policy.

    Nicola Blackwood

    NHS England is responsible for ensuring that clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are fulfilling their statutory role and making decisions in line with published guidance. However, it is the responsibility of individual CCGs to monitor the impact of commissioning decisions in its area.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Government has provided support for the fish farming industry in Egypt.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The Government does not provide support for the fish farming industry in Egypt.

  • Michael Tomlinson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Michael Tomlinson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Tomlinson on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average waiting times are for the return of Disclosure and Barring Service documentation for applicants from Dorset.

    Karen Bradley

    The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) is undertaking a transformation programme to reform the way it delivers its services. Release 1 (R1) will improve efficiency with modernised IT solutions and business processes, making it more convenient and quicker for customers. This does not include using volunteers to operate the disclosure process, given the highly sensitive nature of the information involved.

    For applications received from individuals with a Dorset postcode between December 2014 and November 2015, the average processing time was 23.4 days. It is not possible to calculate the average figure for those from East Dorset specifically as this information is not collected.

  • Lord Knight of Weymouth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Knight of Weymouth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Knight of Weymouth on 2016-01-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many cheques were issued by each government department, including their agencies and public bodies, in (1) 2015, (2) 2014, (3) 2013, and (4) 2012, and what was the value of those cheques.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The information requested is not held centrally. The Government Banking Service is a provider of banking services across Government, but each Government Department is responsible for setting its own policy in regards to making payments by cheque. Further details are set out in the publication, “Managing Public Money” which is available on Gov.uk.

  • Jo Cox – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Jo Cox – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jo Cox on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made on the proportion of new build housing constructed in this Parliament that will be bungalows.

    Brandon Lewis

    It is not for the Department to estimate the amount of new build housing that will be bungalows. The National Planning Policy Framework and planning guidance requires local authorities to plan for a mix of housing based on current and future demographic trends, and the needs of different groups in their area.

  • Lord Empey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Empey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Empey on 2016-03-01.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the part played by people traffickers in the arrival in northern France of large numbers of refugees and migrants seeking access to the UK.

    Lord Bates

    We are deeply concerned by the migration crisis in Europe. We believe that organised criminal gangs are operating in and around the camps in Northern France and fuelling organised immigration crime. We are working closely with our French counterparts through the Joint Operational Command and Control Centre which includes intelligence sharing and developing the intelligence picture and we will continue to assess this crime type.

    In addition, the UK has provided specific financial assistance to fund a project aimed at protecting the most vulnerable people in the camps, agreed in the UK-France Declaration of August 2015. This project is setup to identify vulnerable people in the camps in Calais and is being delivered by a French non-Government organisation, France Terre D’Asile. It seeks to identify potential victims of trafficking and exploitation (including children), and direct them to existing protection, support and advice within France. The UK has contributed £530,000 (€750,000) towards the costs of this project.

  • Clive Betts – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Clive Betts – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Betts on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to page 2 of Budget 2016, whether the £3.5 billion savings to public spending to be achieved by 2012-20 will affect the four year funding settlement to local councils announced by his Department in December 2015.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    While the Government has not yet completed its departmental efficiency review to help identify further savings in 2019-20, we expect the four year allocations confirmed in the final settlement on 10 February 2016 to be the amounts presented to Parliament each year, should councils choose to accept the offer.

    We look forward to councils publishing efficiency plans by 14 October 2016 that demonstrate how the greater certainty on offer can bring about opportunities for further savings. However, if councils prefer not to have a four year settlement we cannot guarantee their future levels of funding.

    We have been clear that funding allocations in 2019-20 may be subject to the implementation of 100% business rate retention, something councils have asked for over decades and which we are working with the sector to deliver.

  • Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Deech on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Verma on 25 April (HL7413), how the pre-approved EU list of named civil servants is approved, and by whom; and how that process is subject to independent auditing, and by whom.

    Baroness Verma

    The UK uses the EU PEGASE mechanism to earmark funds to payment of vetted PA civil servants and pensioners. The list of PEGASE Direct Financial Support eligible beneficiaries is determined each month by Deloitte auditors on the basis of the EU eligibility criteria. The list of approved recipients is subject to a vetting process that includes screening against international (including Israeli) ad hoc sanctions lists.

  • Lord Trefgarne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Trefgarne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Trefgarne on 2016-06-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to secure adequate supplies of anti-TB vaccine for use on badgers, in view of the present shortage.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The ongoing shortage of Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine, and the need to prioritise available stocks for humans, is impacting on supply for badger vaccination projects. Following advice from Public Health England (PHE) in December 2015, Defra took the decision to suspend attempts to source BCG vaccine for the Badger Edge Vaccination Scheme and other private badger vaccination deployment projects in England until this situation is resolved.

    We are seeking regular updates from PHE about the vaccine shortage so that once the situation is resolved we can be in a position to re-start ordering of vaccine at the earliest opportunity.

  • Clive Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Clive Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Lewis on 2016-09-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 8 June 2016 to Question 38976, on married quarters, what assessment his Department has made of the habitability of the 10,187 void properties.

    Mark Lancaster

    The Department continually assesses the condition and thus the habitability of its housing stock, including void properties.

    With the introduction of the Combined Accommodation Assessment System (CAAS) on 1 April 2016, all Service Family Accommodation (SFA) in the UK were subject to a physical survey and/or extrapolation from like properties on the same estate. Void properties were assessed as part of the survey programme.

    For void properties, 92% were assessed as being at Decent Homes Standard (DHS) and 8% below. In line with the commitment given in the Armed Forces Covenant, SFA below DHS will not be allocated to incoming Service families. For families living in properties below the DHS they will be offered to move to a different property where we can.

    Overall 83% SFA exceed the Decent Homes Standard.