The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-07-13.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to make an assessment of the implications for his policy on fiscal devolution of the findings of the Centre for Cities report, 10 years of tax, published on 7 July 2016, on regional variations in tax generation.
Mr David Gauke
The Chancellor takes into account a wide range external reports and representations when making policy.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policy on state pension age increases of the Pensions Policy Institute briefing note, published on 27 July 2016, on the effect of rises in state pension age on vulnerable people; and if he will make it his policy to allow early access to a full or reduced state pension for people who have 45 years of national insurance contributions.
Richard Harrington
The Government will consider the evidence on future approaches to State Pension age in the course of the first review of the State Pension age, conducted under Section 27 of the 2014 Pensions Act, which will report by 7 May 2017.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much her Department plans to invest in early intervention services for young people with mental health conditions in each of the next five years.
Edward Timpson
Children and young people’s mental health is a priority for this Government, supported by an additional £1.4 billion over the lifetime of this Parliament. Each clinical commissioning group has worked with partners, including schools and colleges, to develop a Local Transformation Plan setting out how they will provide support for the full spectrum of mental health conditions, including early intervention measures.
Schools and colleges have an important role to play in supporting the mental health of children and young people, and we will continue to invest in this. We have provided them with a range of information, support, advice and guidance to help them develop ‘whole-school’ approaches to best suit the needs of their pupils. This includes guidance on: teaching about such issues as depression and anxiety within their personal, social, health and economic education curriculum, and providing effective school-based counselling. Teachers can also access free online support for pupils with a range of mental health issues, including depression and anxiety, through the MindEd website.
We want to support schools and colleges further, and to help us to know where to best direct this support we are currently conducting a large-scale survey asking them what approaches they use, as well as what they find to be the most effective. The results should be available next spring.
The Department of Health has also commissioned a new prevalence survey that should provide updated information on a range of specific mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression. This is due to report in 2018.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-09-13.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the combined effect of the Apprenticeship Levy, the National Living Wage and the increase in auto-enrolment charges on FTSE 250 companies’ employment spend.
Mr David Gauke
The Government is taking action to build an economy that works for everyone. We have committed to improve the technical and professional skills of the workforce by putting control of apprenticeship funding in the hands of employers, to boost the wages of the lowest paid, and, through Automatic Enrolment and pensions tax reliefs, to support people in saving for retirement. At the same time, we are supporting business with a competitive and fair tax system, including the reduction of the corporation tax main rate from 28% to 20%. Finance Act 2016 cut the rate further, to 17% in 2020, ensuring the lowest rate in the G20.
The Government has not produced a combined assessment of the effect of these specific policies on employment spend for this group of companies. The costs and benefits to business of regulatory measures such as the National Living Wage and Automatic Enrolment are set out in impact assessments (available at legislation.gov.uk and gov.uk respectively), and the independent Office for Budget Responsibility takes the impact of government policies on the economy into account in producing its forecasts.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-09-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 44394, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for its policies of the finding in the NSPCC report, entitled Transforming mental health services for children who have experienced abuse, published in June 2016, that 14 per cent of Local Transformation Plans contained an adequate needs assessment for children who have been abused or neglected; and if he will issue further guidance to clinical commissioning groups on ensuring such plans include such an assessment.
Nicola Blackwood
The published Children and Young People’s Local Transformation Plans (LTPs) for mental health set out how local areas intend to implement the proposals detailed in “Future in Mind” published in March 2015. These plans are jointly produced by clinical commissioning groups working with key partners across the National Health Service, local authority, education, youth justice and voluntary sectors, and crucially, involving young people and their families in their design. LTPs should cover the full spectrum of service provision, addressing the mental health needs of all children and young people including the most vulnerable, making it easier for them to access the support they need when and where they need it.
NHS England published a quantitative review of LTPs in January 2016 and a further thematic review of LTPs in August 2016 which includes detailed analysis of developing models and approaches to identification and management of children and young people with extra vulnerability to mental health problems including those who have experienced abuse or neglect.
NHS England has issued further guidance regarding the refresh of LTPs which includes a reminder regarding meeting the needs of children and young people who have extra vulnerabilities, such as those who have been abused.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 44621, what information his Department holds on levels of investment from the public purse into mental health services in the community between 2010 and 2015; and what level of funding his Department has committed to investing in mental health services in the community until 2020.
Nicola Blackwood
Information on investment in community mental health services is not held centrally. Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are responsible for commissioning community mental health services for their local population. CCGs are required to increase their spending on mental health each year, at least in line with the growth in their overall funding allocations. From this year, NHS England’s financial reporting will be aligned to mental health priorities, increasing transparency and allowing resources to be tracked at CCG level.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-10-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 9 September 2016 to Question 44301, United Nations: finance, how much his Department contributed voluntarily to the missions referred to in each of the last five years.
Alok Sharma
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office pays the UK’s assessed contributions for Special Political Mission thematic cluster I, which covers special and personal envoys and advisers of the UN Secretary General. This is paid as part of our contribution to the UN Regular Budget, which is mandatory under the UN Charter.
The UK Government has also, on occasion, provided additional targeted voluntary funding. Information about these discretionary payments is not held in a single consolidated form, and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. The Government identifies and monitors the value and impact of providing the voluntary funding on a case-by-case basis.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, (a) how many and (b) what proportion of staff employed by his Department are non-UK nationals.
Mr Marcus Jones
All government departments are bound by legal requirements concerning the right to work in the UK and, in addition, the Civil Service Nationality Rules.
Evidence of nationality is checked at the point of recruitment into the Civil Service as part of wider pre-employment checks, but there is no requirement on departments to retain this information beyond the point at which it has served its purpose.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 12 June 2016 to Question 42169, what his Department’s timetable is for the closure of remaining arrears-only Child Support Agency cases after the current three year programme for closing cases with an ongoing liability is completed.
Caroline Nokes
We are currently reviewing the timetable for the closure of Child Support Agency arrears only cases.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2015-11-30.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons Dr Nahida Al Arja and four of her colleagues were denied permission to enter the UK to attend a recent academic conference on trauma.
James Brokenshire
In order to safeguard an individual’s personal information and comply with the Data Protection Act 1998 the Home Office is limited in what information it can provide when the request is made by someone who is not the applicant. The Home Office is therefore unable to provide the information requested.
All applications are considered on their individual merits and in line with the Immigration Rules.