Tag: Richard Burden

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-04-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the implications for testing of emissions data by the Vehicle Certification Agency of Mitsubishi Motors having falsified fuel economy data; what information his Department holds on the number of vehicles affected by their falsification in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones

The Government takes very seriously any misrepresentation of fuel consumption data to consumers. The Vehicle Certification Agency publishes data on new and used passenger cars and vans and is liaising urgently with Mitsubishi Motors to ensure that information provided in the UK is accurate.

VCA has not issued approvals for any of the vehicles reported to be affected in the Japanese market. However the Department for Transport will continue to monitor for updates concerning whether other models are affected.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-04-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the timetable is for (a) Highways England to make a decision on the location of the new Lower Thames Crossing and (b) construction to begin on the new Lower Thames Crossing; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones

The public consultation closed on 24 March 2016 and the responses are currently being analysed. It is expected that a decision on the location and route will be made later this year following Highways England’s recommendation to the Department for Transport.

Subject to funding and planning approvals, we anticipate construction to start in 2020/2021.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-05-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much the (a) land and (b) buildings on the site of the Marine Office in Norwich are worth.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The only value to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) for Norwich Marine Office is the value of the lease, which is 66k per annum. The value of the land and building resides with the landlord.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-05-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) claims and (b) payments were made following claim approval for vaccine damage for whooping cough in each year since 2003.

Justin Tomlinson

Information regarding claims and awards in respect of each particular disease/vaccine is unavailable. This is because this information is not collected or collated.

The Vaccine Damage Payments Unit administers the Scheme but do not collate information about vaccinations given to those claiming or receiving a payment under the scheme. As a number of vaccinations are often given in close proximity, often on the same day, it is not always possible to state categorically which has caused the adverse reaction. Such data is not required for the administration of the scheme.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-06-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to encourage the take-up of creative subjects in secondary schools.

Nick Gibb

The Government believes that every child should experience a high quality education throughout their time at school including in creative subjects such as music, art and design. All state-funded schools must provide a broad and balanced curriculum that promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils at the school and of society.

In maintained schools music and art and design are compulsory subjects within the national curriculum for 5-14 year olds. Maintained schools are also required to teach their pupils dance, as part of the PE curriculum for 5-14 year olds and drama, as part of the English curriculum for 5-16 year olds.

We have reformed GCSEs to make them more rigorous and to match expectations in the highest performing jurisdictions around the world. Since the English Baccalaureate (Ebacc) was first introduced the proportion of pupils in state-funded schools taking at least one GCSE in an arts subject has increased, rising from 46 per cent in 2011 to 50 per cent in 2015. From September 2016, schools will be teaching new gold standard GCSEs in music, dance, drama and art and design and new AS and A levels in music, dance and drama and theatre.

Between 2012-16, the Department invested over £460 million in a diverse portfolio of arts and music education programmes that are designed to improve access to the arts for all children, regardless of their background, and to develop talent across the country.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-07-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions she has had with (a) LEAP Academy Trust, (b) teaching trade unions, (c) staff and (d) students and parents on the future viability of Baverstock Academy; and what steps she is taking to ensure that that school remains open.

Edward Timpson

Leap Academy Trust has formally requested that the Secretary of State agree to terminate their funding agreement. No decision has yet been made. The Secretary of State will need to be confident that a robust plan is in place to ensure pupils’ education continues without disruption. In the meantime, our priority is to stabilise the academy in terms of school improvement and outcomes for pupils and the future of the staff.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assistance his Department provides to local authorities to help tackle (a) homelessness and (b) the root causes of homelessness.

Mr Marcus Jones

One person without a home is one too many. That is why the Government is clear that prevention must be at the heart of everything we do to tackle homelessness. We will be investing £500 million in work to prevent and relieve homelessness across this Parliament. This includes protecting homelessness prevention funding for local authorities, which will amount to £315 million by 2019-20, to help them continue to provide quality advice and assistance to everyone who approaches them for help. Since 2010, local authorities have helped prevent or relieve over one million cases of homelessness.

Homelessness is rarely a housing issue alone. The causes are varied and driven by issues such as health, education, justice, welfare, and employment. That is why we have increased central investment to tackle homelessness over the next four years to £139 million, including a new £10 million Social Impact Bond to support rough sleepers with the most complex needs. This builds on the success of the world’s first homelessness Social Impact Bond, run by the Greater London Authority to turn round the lives around of 830 of London’s most entrenched rough sleepers. Over half have achieved accommodation, employment or reconnection outcomes.

In addition we have invested £15 million to improve outcomes for young people through the Fair Chance Fund. This funding is turning around the lives of around 1,900 18 to 25 year olds with complex and overlapping needs, by supporting them into accommodation, education, training and employment.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-09-14.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department takes to ensure that government projects are delivered on time and within budget.

Ben Gummer

All projects are ultimately the responsibility of individual government departments. However, with £400 billion in the Infrastructure Pipeline and £400 billion in the Major Projects Portfolio, the Cabinet Office has a central team, the Infrastructure Projects Authority (IPA), to support departments to deliver on time and within budget. The IPA provides expertise and practical help, a supportive environment to enable major projects to succeed, and manages an independent assurance process to ensure projects are delivered to time and within budget.

• IPA deploys expert commercial, financial and delivery support
• IPA delivers independent high quality assurance and oversight
• IPA develops standards, insights and tools, developing the project leadership and project finance professions
• IPA delivers key finance schemes (PF2 & guarantees) to enable key projects to proceed

The IPA works with all partners in infrastructure and major projects – government departments, project teams, HMT, Cabinet Office, and the private sector – to do this. The IPA reports jointly to HMT and Cabinet Office Ministers.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-10-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many meetings (a) Ministers of her Department and (b) officials of HM Prison Service have had with drone manufacturers in each quarter of each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Sam Gyimah

Details of all ministerial meetings with external companies are published on gov.uk. Information on officials’ meetings is not held centrally.

We remain vigilant to all incidents involving drones and take the threat they pose to prison security very seriously. We have already introduced new legislation to further strengthen our powers, so that anyone found using a drone in an attempt to get contraband into prisons can be punished with a sentence of up to two years imprisonment. We take a zero tolerance approach to smuggling of contraband into prisons and work closely with the police and Crown Prosecution Service to ensure those caught are prosecuted.

A range of methods to counter the threat posed by drones are continuously being trialled and evaluated for their effectiveness across the prison estate.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much his Department spent on funding the independent review on the future of the Manston airfield.

Andrew Jones

The Department for Transport spent £75,000 to undertake an independent review of the Compulsory Purchase Order process regarding Manston airfield.