Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Baroness Barker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Barker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Barker on 2016-07-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the recommendations of the December 2015 report of the House of Commons Women and Equalities Committee Transgender Equality, when they plan to publish (1) a new, cross-departmental transgender equality action plan, and (2) a balance sheet of the previous transgender action plan along with a new strategy to tackle those issues which remain unaddressed.

    Lord Nash

    On the 7th July 2016 the Government responded to the Women and Equalities Select Committee inquiry on transgender equality. In this, we committed to publishing an update on progress against “Working for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Equality: Moving Forward (2011)”; and “Advancing transgender equality: a plan for action (2011)”.

    The Government also committed to producing a new action plan on transgender equality.

    The Government will publish both of these documents in due course.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the possible diplomatic benefits of recommissioning HM Yacht Britannia.

    Alok Sharma

    The Government is determined to make a success of our global role in the world, but re-commissioning the Royal Yacht Britannia is not on our agenda, nor is commissioning a new yacht. There was a debate in Westminster Hall about this very topic on 11 October which aired a range of issues including feasibility and cost. My Rt Hon Friend, the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson MP), the Foreign Secretary, also told the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee on 13 October that he hoped a consortium of philanthropists would come forward to finance the cost of a new yacht.

    The former Royal Yacht was used on just 37 occasions for trade promotion and signing trade deals during the last seven years of its commission (1989-1997) and only 27 trips were made overseas – four times per year. There is no evidence that the yacht made a difference to the trade deals secured in these years and this level of use would not represent a good return on investment.

    The Government does not have potential costs for the reintroduction of the Royal Yacht Britannia or building of a new royal yacht because neither a feasibility study nor a review has been carried out since the decommissioning of the Britannia in 1997.

    We shall continue to make full use of the FCO global network of nearly 270 embassies, high commissions and consulates to promote UK interests overseas. We shall also continue to make full use of existing Royal Navy ships for promotional purposes when they are in foreign ports.

  • Lucy Powell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lucy Powell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lucy Powell on 2015-11-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of additional teachers needed in (a) 2016-17, (b) 2017-18, (c) 2018-19, (d) 2019-20 and (e) 2020-21.

    Nick Gibb

    The Department for Education uses the Teacher Supply Model (TSM) to estimate the demand for the number of qualified teachers within state-funded schools in England each year using a range of assumptions, including projections for the numbers of pupils in schools, the number of teachers expected to leave the sector and the number of returnees.

    The estimate of teacher demand is published in part 1 of the TSM here: www.gov.uk/government/publications/teacher-supply-model

    The TSM’s primary purpose is to estimate the number of Initial Teacher Training (ITT) places required in the 2016/17 academic year to yield the required number of Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs) entering the profession in 2017/18. The TSM is updated annually to reflect the latest available data.

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  • Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Church Commissioners

    Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Church Commissioners

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2015-11-25.

    To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what investment the Church of England has in cinemas and buildings housing cinemas.

    Mrs Caroline Spelman

    The Church Commissioners’ UK investments include just over £300,000 of directly held cinema group shares. In addition the Commissioners have indirect investment exposure to cinemas via property holdings in the Metrocentre, Bluewater and Cheshire Oaks retail shopping centres, all of which contain cinemas. Finally, the Commissioners have identified a very small indirect exposure to a cinema in our UK private equity portfolio.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the international legal implications of reports of Saudi Arabia bombing the Iranian Embassy in Sana’a; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    We are currently looking into unverified Iranian reports that a Saudi airstrike hit the Iranian Embassy in Sana’a. The Saudi government has denied that any such attack took place. The priority right now is for all parties to show restraint and responsibility in order to prevent the igniting of further hostilities. The British Government is urging all parties to show calm at this time and to work towards a de-escalation of growing tensions.

  • 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 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what provisions are in place to support and promote the mental wellbeing of psychology professionals within the NHS workforce.

    Alistair Burt

    NHS England’s Five Year Forward View draws attention to how National Health Service employers should look after their staff to stay healthy through new incentives, ensuring that guidance issued by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on promoting healthy workplaces is implemented, particularly for mental health. The frontline work of our staff requires support, which is why both psychological wellbeing practitioners and high intensity practitioners have one hour of clinical supervision with an experienced trained supervisor per week. In addition, group supervision is available for longer sessions.

  • Ivan Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Ivan Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ivan Lewis on 2016-02-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessments she has made of the potential effect of planned future budget reductions on the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority on its response to future flooding.

    Mike Penning

    The Government commissioned Sir Ken Knight to carry out an independent review of the scope for fire and rescue authorities across England to improve their efficiency. His report, Facing the Future, published in 2013, provided a wide-ranging analysis of costs and benchmarking between fire and rescue authorities on a range of measures of financial performance.

    We have delivered a sustainable finance settlement and there is no question that fire and rescue authorities will continue to have the resources they need. The number of incidents attended by Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority is 27 per cent lower than five years ago, and injuries requiring hospital treatment are 59 per cent lower.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 17 February 2016 to Question 26459, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of changes to the pay to stay scheme proposed in the Housing and Planning Bill on the number of residents who leave their local communities.

    Brandon Lewis

    Following my answer on 17 February, the Government’s consultation response on Pay to Stay published on 9 March confirmed that a taper will be applied above the minimum income thresholds. This will mean that rental increases will be lower for those households close to the income thresholds. And I would reiterate that if tenants on incomes well above the threshold wish to take up rental opportunities in the private sector then this should be encouraged to free up social housing for those most in need.

  • Tania Mathias – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Tania Mathias – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tania Mathias on 2016-04-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what research her Department is (a) carrying out and (b) encouraging into extending the use of materials that biodegrade more quickly.

    Rory Stewart

    In October 2014, Defra commissioned the Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) project on biodegradable plastic carrier bags – solutions through innovation. The project is contracted to the plastic packing manufacturer Aquapak Polymers Ltd, and is due to report in December this year. The project is testing the biodegradability of a hydrophilic polymer under simulated composting and anaerobic digestion conditions, and in experiments simulating natural conditions, and testing the impact on aquatic life.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of UK citizens imprisoned abroad in each country.

    James Duddridge

    We collect global detainee statistics twice a year. On 30 September 2015 we were aware of 2,003 British nationals detained overseas (either pre- or post- sentencing). The largest numbers are detained in USA (499), Spain (186), Ireland (173), Australia (155) and France (102).