The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-07-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many air ambulance rescues have taken place in Cumbria in each month of the last 10 years.
Mr Philip Dunne
The information requested is not centrally collected.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-09-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will set out her plans for the future of Cumbria Police; and whether that police force’s (a) budget and (b) number of police officers will be reduced in the current financial year.
Brandon Lewis
Decisions about the policing priorities in Cumbria are a matter for the locally elected and accountable Police and Crime Commissioner. In Cumbria, police recorded crime fell by 5% between June 2010 and March 2016.
In 2016/17, direct resource funding to Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs), including precept (the element of police funding derived from council tax), has been protected to at least flat cash levels. This means that no PCC who chose to maximise precept is facing a reduction in cash funding in 2016/17 compared to 2015/16 and the majority are seeing marginal cash increases in their spending power.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-10-07.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Government will maintain the cap on bankers’ bonuses after the UK leaves the EU.
Simon Kirby
Until negotiations on Britain’s future relationship with Europe are concluded, we remain a full member of the EU and must meet our obligations as a member of the EU.
All government departments are currently reviewing the EU laws that apply in their policy areas and how our withdrawal from the EU will affect the operation of those laws.
The UK is at the forefront of global efforts to tackle unacceptable pay practices in the banking sector and has the toughest regime on pay of any major financial centre.
Firms are now required to have policies in place to defer, reduce, cancel or clawback bonuses in the event that poor performance or misconduct comes to light and the Government expects firms to be proactive in their application of these policies. Used in this way bonuses can be an effective incentive for staff to act in the long term interests of a business.
The Government’s efforts have resulted in a restructuring of pay including a significant reduction in cash bonuses, and a better alignment of risk and reward in the financial sector.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2015-10-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to review the adequacy of his Department’s guidance on the care and management of transsexual prisoners.
Caroline Dinenage
Prison Service Instruction 07/2011 sets out NOMS policy on the care and management of prisoners who live or propose to live in the gender other to the one assigned at birth. Prisoners are normally placed according to their legally recognised gender. However, the guidelines allow room for discretion and senior prison staff will review the circumstances of every case in consultation with medical and other experts in order to protect the physical and emotional wellbeing of the person concerned along with the safety and wellbeing of other prisoners.
A review of the current policy on transgender and transsexual prisoners began earlier this year and revised policy guidance will be issued to reflect NOMS’ responsibilities to transgender offenders in the community as well as in custody. The intention is to implement the guidance early in the New Year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-01-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the written statement by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 15 December 2015, HLWS393, what elements constitute a similarly effective system for tax information exchange and company beneficial ownership information.
James Duddridge
We have asked the Overseas Territories to implement either a central register of company beneficial ownership, or a similarly effective system, which meets the following criteria:
a) UK law enforcement and tax authorities must be able to access company beneficial ownership information without restriction, subject to relevant safeguards;
b) These competent authorities should be able to quickly identify all companies that a particular beneficial owner has a stake in without needing to submit multiple and repeated requests; and
c) Companies or their beneficial owners must not be alerted to the fact that an investigation is underway.
We are continuing our dialogue with the Overseas Territories and have offered technical support as they develop their proposals.
The Overseas Territories have shown their commitment to tax information exchange by being early adopters of the new OECD global standard on tax transparency with the first exchange of data taking place in 2017. They have also had the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance on Tax Matters extended to them.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-03-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much UK steel in (a) value and (b) weight his Department has used in projects it funds in each of the last 12 months.
Mr Robert Goodwill
Network Rail procures approximately 120,000 tonnes of steel rail per annum from Tata’s plant in Scunthorpe. Network Rail procures a further 8,000 tonnes of steel per annum for niche products supplied by Arcelor Mittal (Spain) and Voestalpine (Austria). Steel requirements for other projects funded by the Department are procured by prime contractors and therefore figures are not available. A breakdown of directly sourced UK steel is shown below for the last 13 rail periods.
|
Railway period |
Tonnes |
Spend £m |
|
P1, 15/16 |
13,599 |
8.7 |
|
P2, 15/16 |
13,151 |
8.8 |
|
P3, 15/16 |
9,744 |
6.0 |
|
P4, 15/16 |
9,091 |
5.8 |
|
P5, 15/16 |
6,560 |
4.2 |
|
P6, 15/16 |
9,109 |
5.9 |
|
P7, 15/16 |
9,416 |
6.1 |
|
P8, 15/16 |
10,494 |
6.9 |
|
P9, 15/16 |
6,752 |
4.2 |
|
P10, 15/16 |
4,640 |
3.0 |
|
P11, 15/16 |
4,636 |
2.8 |
|
P12, 15/16 |
7,526 |
4.7 |
|
P13, 15/16 (Forecast) |
18,251 |
8.7 |
|
TOTAL LAST 12 MONTHS |
122,969 |
75.7 |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-05-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to minimise the difference between the number of words to which young children in low-income and high-income households are exposed.
Nick Gibb
No matter where they live or what their background, every child in this country deserves the opportunity to read, to read widely, and to read well. The Government wants all children to develop a wide vocabulary irrespective of their background. In August 2015, the Secretary of State launched a literacy campaign to make children in this country the most literate in Europe, in the next five years.
We placed phonics at the heart of the curriculum to give all young children the skills to decode words and provide the foundation for them to read fluently.
The National Curriculum framework sets a clear expectation that teachers develop pupils’ vocabulary, building on pupils’ current knowledge. This covers both general vocabulary development and the subject specific language that pupils need to be able to use to progress in, for example, mathematics and science.
Vocabulary development is emphasised and integrated throughout the programmes of study for English and linked to their reading, writing and spelling. Both the reading and writing domains of the English programmes of study emphasise the importance of building pupils’ vocabulary.
Reading widely and often, together with reading for pleasure is also reinforced throughout the programmes of study, and attention to the quantity and quality of reading will support vocabulary development.
We are working with The Reading Agency to set up book clubs in hundreds of primary schools across the country; we are supporting their work to enrol 8 year olds in libraries; and we support the voluntary sector’s ‘Read On. Get On’ campaign, which is playing a key role in raising literacy. Our ambition is that children can get to know the classics of English literature whether or not these books are on the bookshelves at home. In February 2016, Penguin Classics launched their ‘Classics in Schools’ initiative to give sets of 100 classics to schools at reduced cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-06-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he plans to increase the provision of respite and replacement care for carers in England.
Alistair Burt
The Government recognises the invaluable contribution made by unpaid carers and the importance of supporting them in their carer roles. This includes provision of and access to respite and replacement care.
The Department has provided £400 million to the National Health Service over four years from 2011 for carers to have breaks from their caring responsibilities. The carers breaks funding of £130 million is now included in the Better Care Fund in 2016/17. The Department has also provided £186.6 million of funding in 2016/17 to local authorities for improved carers’ rights, as established in the Care Act 2014.
The Care Act 2014 duty for local authorities to undertake carers’ assessments also provides an opportunity for the local authority and the carer to look at the support they need and the outcomes that they wish to achieve, including providing them with a break or taking up work, educational and leisure opportunities if they wish.
The Department is committed to continuing to improve support for carers and is currently leading the development of a new cross-Government national carers’ strategy, due to be published by the end of 2016. We are currently consulting widely with a range of stakeholders and carers themselves to inform the development of the strategy.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-07-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that suitable brownfield sites are prioritised for development over greenbelt sites under the proposed Housing Delivery Test.
Brandon Lewis
We are still considering responses to the proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework, including on the housing delivery test.
The Government has put in place the strongest protections for the Green Belt. The Framework is clear that inappropriate development will not be allowed unless there are very special circumstances, and that Green Belt boundaries should be adjusted only in exceptional circumstances, through the Local Plan process. The Framework also encourages development of brownfield land, and we have undertaken to ensure that 90 per cent of brownfield land suitable for housing will have planning permissions for new homes in place by the end of this Parliament.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-09-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will reassess the potential merits of proposals to make sustainable drainage systems compulsory in new housing developments at risk from flooding.
Gavin Barwell
There are strict tests in national planning policy to protect people and property from flooding and we have been very clear that where these tests are not met new development should not be allowed.
The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that new development should only be considered appropriate in areas at risk of flooding where it gives priority to the use of sustainable drainage systems. The policy was strengthened in April 2015 to make clear the expectation that sustainable drainage systems should be provided in all major new developments, unless demonstrated to be inappropriate. The Framework is underpinned by planning guidance, including guidance on sustainable drainage systems, which was strengthened last year.
The Housing and Planning Act 2016 places a duty on the government to carry out a review of both planning legislation and planning policy in respect of sustainable drainage systems in developments. Any subsequent changes would be based on the evidence from this review.
Additionally, developers must comply with the building regulations which give priority to sustainable drainage systems in their hierarchy of arrangements for dealing with rainwater draining from roofs and pavings giving access to the building.