The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-06-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 17 November 2015 to Question 15358, what recent progress has been made on the review into the Code of Practice for the Welfare of Privately Kept Non-Human Primates.
George Eustice
We are continuing to consider which aspects of the current Code of Practice might need revisiting.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-06-20.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Answer of 1 March 2016 to Question 25631, whether HM Revenue and Customs has completed its investigations into the six social care companies; and what recent assessment he has made of the extent of National Minimum Wage compliance in the social care sector.
Mr David Gauke
The government is committed to increasing compliance with minimum wage legislation and effective enforcement of it. Everyone who is entitled to the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage should receive it. Employers who pay workers less than the minimum or living wage not only have to pay back arrears of wages at current rates but also face financial penalties of up to £20,000 per underpaid worker.
HMRC has not completed all the investigations into the six social care companies. HMRC continues to be aware of the risks of underpayment of NMW in the social care sector and is prioritising complaints from workers; working with other agencies and departments to raise awareness of the rules; and undertaking targeted enforcement to ensure that workers are paid what they are legally owed.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-07-06.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 13 June 2016 to Question 39321, on Civil Service recruitment, what assessment he has made of the effect of the geographical focus on London of fast stream recruitment on his Department’s plans to diversify the civil service.
Matthew Hancock
Research undertaken within the Civil Service (by the Bridge Group in 2015/16) and externally (e.g. by Trendence in 2015) shows that lower socio-economic applicants are potentially more likely to be less mobile and less willing to move to London.
A dedicated new assessment centre will open in Newcastle in Autumn 2016. From Autumn 2017 we intend to regionalise further, introducing ‘pop up’ centres in support of our fixed assessment locations.
Beyond the assessment process, we also require all centrally managed Fast Streamers to undertake a regional place.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what timeline he has set for the appointment of the Director of Labour Market Enforcement.
Margot James
The appointment of the Director of Labour Market Enforcement is being made through a formal recruitment process. A campaign was jointly launched by the Department for Business, Energy and Industry Strategy (BEIS) and the Home Office in June after the Immigration Act received Royal Assent in May 2016. Shortlisting took place during the summer and interviews are scheduled for early October.
My Rt hon Friends the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Home Department plan to meet appointable candidates following interviews, and will have discussions before making a joint decision. The successful candidate will be announced as soon as practicably possible.
BEIS and the Home Office are working together to implement a Labour market Enforcement programme. This followed a formal consultation, Tackling Exploitation in the Labour Market, to which groups representing workers and victims of labour market exploitation responded.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-10-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what verification process is used by HM Revenue and Customs to ensure that the level of arrears paid to workers using the self-correction process by employers found to be non-compliant with the (a) national minimum wage and (b) national living wage is a true reflection of the amount the workforce is owed.
Margot James
Where HM Revenue and Customs instructs employers to self-correct, the employer must declare details of the arrears subsequently paid to workers. HMRC perform checks before accepting that pay has been corrected.
HMRC take the circumstances of individual employers into account when instructing to self-correct. If the value of the arrears repaid does not reflect what HMRC expect based on the facts of the case, they can open an investigation to ensure that workers receive what they are owed. Where employers need assistance determining the value of the arrears owed, HMRC will work with them to ensure they get it right.
HMRC’s assurance process involves performing a sample check that arrears have been paid correctly. Workers are selected and contacted by telephone and correspondence to confirm that they have received the arrears they are owed, in the amount that the employer has reported.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2015-10-28.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment has been made of the effect of incorporating the function of the Pay and Work Rights Helpline into ACAS on outcomes for workers.
Nick Boles
From 1 April 2015, the ACAS Helpline is, in addition to its usual services, answering queries previously handled by the Pay and Work rights Helpline. This provides a one stop shop for those seeking advice and guidance on employment rights. Where appropriate, ACAS passes on callers through a real time transfer of the call to the relevant enforcement body for them to take any further follow up action, including any specific complaints.
No formal assessment has been made at this time of the outcomes for workers. ACAS continues to work closely with the four enforcement bodies to ensure the service is bedding in effectively and delivering the right outcomes for the public.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 16 November 2015 to Question 14607, what the evidential basis is for the assertion on page 8 of the consultation document, Tackling Exploitation in the Labour Market, published in October 2015, that there has been a shift from abuses of employment regulation.
Karen Bradley
The relevant text in the consultation document is based on Gangmasters’ Licensing Authority’s operational information.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-01-04.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of tax credit recipients had their credits withdrawn when their children progressed into post-16 education in each of the last five financial years.
Damian Hinds
No Child Tax Credit (CTC) claimants should have had their award ended as a consequence of their child progressing into post-16 education provided they continue to meet the qualifying conditions for CTC and their child is in full-time, non-advanced education, as prescribed in the relevant regulations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate his Department has made of the average period of time which (a) male and (b) female midwives who enter training at the age of (i) 19, (ii) 25, (iii) 30 and (iv) 40 in 2017-18 will take to pay off their student loans taking into account changes to the student support system from 2016-17.
Joseph Johnson
The changes announced at the Spending Review will enable us to lift the cap on the number of students on nursing courses and will provide nursing students with access to around 25% additional financial support. We expect this reform will enable universities to provide up to 10,000 additional nursing, midwifery and allied health training places over this Parliament.
The average repayment term on student loans is calculated for the total full time student population, rather than separately for students taking certain courses or their age on starting their course. On this basis, we estimate that the average repayment term for a full time student entering Higher Education in 2017-18 is around 20 to 25 years.
This estimate includes both borrowers who fully repay their loans and those who have loans written off due to death, disability leading to permanent inability to work, or reaching the end of the repayment term. The estimate takes into account the changes to student finance announced at Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-02-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish the independent costings of linking High Speed 2 to the Northern Powerhouse Rail work for both Manchester and Sheffield city centre station locations.
Andrew Jones
Since the publication of the March 2015 Northern Transport Strategy, the government and Transport for the North have undertaken significant work to understand what the capability of the rail infrastructure – between and within cities – would need to be to deliver the Northern Powerhouse Rail vision.
Network Rail and HS2 Ltd. are currently working to establish the scale of investment required. We expect to have an understanding of the relative scale of costs by autumn 2016.