UKPOL.CO.UK

Tag: Richard Burden

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2014-04-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of speed awareness courses; and what information her Department collects on speeding and driving offences committed by drivers who have undertaken such a course.

    Karen Bradley

    The number of drivers that opted for a National Driver Offender Retraining
    Scheme (NDORS) speed awareness course rather than accept penalty points on
    their driving licence in 2010 is 447,833, in 2011 is 772,180, 2012 is 926,155 and in
    2013 is 953,464. These reflect the latest updated figures.
    The offer of a speed awareness course is at the discretion of the police. To be
    deemed eligible there must be no excessive speed or other offences committed at
    the same time. Information on previous motoring convictions is not taken into
    account.
    The Department for Transport and the police are in advanced stages of
    commissioning a long term study to assess the effectiveness of speed awareness
    courses.

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Highways Agency will be subject to the Government’s public sector pay policy when it is transformed into a government-owned company.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Government intends to transform the Highways Agency into a government-owned company, as confirmed in the response to consultation published on 30th April. In accordance with TUPE principles, we expect the pay and terms of employment of all staff to remain unchanged once transferred except for the necessary technical amendments to reflect the change to company status.

    Staff management arrangements for the company following transition, including pay and reward, are still being worked through within government. We aim to establish appropriate conditions to allow the company to fulfil its functions efficiently and effectively, whilst keeping costs down for the taxpayer. This will reflect the Government’s pay policy, as well as support the delivery of a substantially increased investment programme.

    There is no intention to encourage or create opportunities for legal tax reduction schemes as part of Highways Agency transformation.

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2014-06-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will bring forward proposals to give employers the choice of (a) having either a direct Government contract for apprenticeships and (b) accessing funding support through their chosen training provider.

    Matthew Hancock

    The Government has consulted on different options for routing apprenticeship funding via employers. The consultation closed on 1 May 2014. We are currently analysing the responses and are committed to designing a system that works for employers of all sizes and in all sectors. Next steps will be announced in the autumn.

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2014-04-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, under what endorsement codes new drivers have had their licence revoked by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency during their two year probationary period in each of the last five years.

    Stephen Hammond

    The information requested is available only from 2010 onwards because details of driving offences and/or convictions prior to this will have been removed from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) record on expiry of the endorsement – normally four years from the date of offence.

    A table has been placed in the Libraries of the House which provides a breakdown of the offence codes that resulted in the driver accumulating six penalty points or more and the driving licence being revoked under the Road Traffic (New Drivers) Act 1995 from 1 January 2010 to 29 March 2014.

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2014-05-02.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Highways Agency will be able to recover VAT in the same way as it can as an executive agency of his Department when it is transformed into a government-owned company.

    Mr David Gauke

    Special provisions apply to Government Departments and health authorities that enable them to recover VAT incurred on certain of their non-business activities. These are set out in section 41(3) of the VAT Act 1994.

    New bodies are not automatically covered by the above provisions, but the Treasury keeps all taxes under review.

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2014-06-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect of school closure for local elections on parents and children.

    Elizabeth Truss

    The Department has made no such assessment. Local returning officers can require a school to act as a polling station and may do so where no suitable alternative venue is available. It is often possible for schools to remain open in such circumstances, but whether to close is an operational decision for the headteacher. We expect headteachers to keep schools open whenever it is reasonable for them to do so.

    Where a headteacher decides to close a school on polling day, we expect them to take all necessary steps to minimise any damage to pupils’ education. This may include making up the missed day later in the year, or combining the day with one of the five annual training days. We also expect schools to give as much notice as possible to parents of any school closures, including for local elections.

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2014-04-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 27 March 2014, Official Report, column 372W, on driving: licensing, how many drivers who received driving convictions within their two year probation period undertook speed awareness courses in each year since 2010.

    Karen Bradley

    The number of drivers that opted for a National Driver Offender Retraining
    Scheme (NDORS) speed awareness course rather than accept penalty points on
    their driving licence in 2010 is 447,833, in 2011 is 772,180, 2012 is 926,155 and in
    2013 is 953,464. These reflect the latest updated figures.
    The offer of a speed awareness course is at the discretion of the police. To be
    deemed eligible there must be no excessive speed or other offences committed at
    the same time. Information on previous motoring convictions is not taken into
    account.
    The Department for Transport and the police are in advanced stages of
    commissioning a long term study to assess the effectiveness of speed awareness
    courses.

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2014-05-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many meetings he has had with each private hire vehicle operator since 2010.

    Stephen Hammond

    Details of Ministerial meetings with external organisations are published every quarter and this information can be accessed on the GOV.UK website via the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministerial-transparency-data#meetings

    “

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2014-06-16.

    To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, how many schools in England and Wales were closed for the local and European elections on 22 May 2014.

    Greg Clark

    The Information requested is not held centrally.

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2014-04-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many British heavy good vehicles (HGV) are not expected to be fully compensated by the reduction in vehicle excise duty introduced as part of the HGV User Levy; and whether this has changed since estimates were made in 2012.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    We estimate that 94% of UK HGVs paying the levy will pay no more than they did before its introduction, taking into account the reductions in Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) that happened at the same time. This figure is the same as was published in the consultation document in January 2012, and discussed during the HGV Road User Levy Act’s passage through Parliament.