Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what progress he has made on defining the terms of reference in preparation for the public inquiry into the handling of the covid-19 pandemic.
Answered by Michael Ellis
On 12 May, the Prime Minister confirmed that a public inquiry into COVID-19 would be established on a statutory basis, with full formal powers, and that it will begin its work in spring 2022.
Further details will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent progress has been made on appointing a chair for the public inquiry into the Government's response to the covid-19 pandemic.
Answered by Michael Ellis
On 12 May, the Prime Minister confirmed that a public inquiry into COVID-19 would be established on a statutory basis, with full formal powers, and that it will begin its work in spring 2022.
Further details will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it his policy to bring forward the public inquiry into the Government's response to the covid-19 pandemic to afford bereaved families the opportunity to have their concerns answered and come to terms with their losses.
Answered by Michael Ellis
On 12 May, the Prime Minister confirmed that a public inquiry into COVID-19 would be established on a statutory basis, with full formal powers, and that it will begin its work in spring 2022.
Further details will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the (a) minutes and (b) decisions of the meetings of the independent Military Advisory Sub-Committee.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The assessment of historic medals claims is a matter for the independent Advisory Military Sub-Committee (AMSC) whose terms of reference are publicly available on gov.uk.
The independent chair of the AMSC was appointed through open and fair competition via a public appointments process. The AMSC has a majority of independent members who were recruited for their working knowledge of HM Armed Forces; experience of public service; experience of assessment and decision-making. It is important that members of the Sub-Committee advising on the award of military honours have relevant knowledge and experience. Members are required to declare any conflicts of interest to the AMSC secretariat before any evidence is presented to the AMSC and prior to any discussion of a particular claim taking place.
The AMSC meets regularly to discuss cases. As an independent Sub-Committee, the AMSC may determine for itself which medals claims should be reviewed. I understand that the case for medallic recognition for Nuclear Test Veterans was considered at length by the Sub-Committee.
It is not possible to give specific timings on the duration required for the Sub-Committee to consider a case, as each claim will be different and each case is carefully considered. The details of cases must remain confidential until the decision-making process is final. To preserve the confidentiality of the honours process, the details of decisions are not published. The outcome of AMSC reviews are announced on gov.uk once the advice has been fully assessed, including (where appropriate) via the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals to The Sovereign.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, why the communication of the decision not to award medals to nuclear test veterans was delayed for 8 months.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The assessment of historic medals claims is a matter for the independent Advisory Military Sub-Committee (AMSC) whose terms of reference are publicly available on gov.uk.
The independent chair of the AMSC was appointed through open and fair competition via a public appointments process. The AMSC has a majority of independent members who were recruited for their working knowledge of HM Armed Forces; experience of public service; experience of assessment and decision-making. It is important that members of the Sub-Committee advising on the award of military honours have relevant knowledge and experience. Members are required to declare any conflicts of interest to the AMSC secretariat before any evidence is presented to the AMSC and prior to any discussion of a particular claim taking place.
The AMSC meets regularly to discuss cases. As an independent Sub-Committee, the AMSC may determine for itself which medals claims should be reviewed. I understand that the case for medallic recognition for Nuclear Test Veterans was considered at length by the Sub-Committee.
It is not possible to give specific timings on the duration required for the Sub-Committee to consider a case, as each claim will be different and each case is carefully considered. The details of cases must remain confidential until the decision-making process is final. To preserve the confidentiality of the honours process, the details of decisions are not published. The outcome of AMSC reviews are announced on gov.uk once the advice has been fully assessed, including (where appropriate) via the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals to The Sovereign.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether members of the independent Military Advisory Sub-Committee are required to declare any links they have with the Ministry of Defence while serving on that committee.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The assessment of historic medals claims is a matter for the independent Advisory Military Sub-Committee (AMSC) whose terms of reference are publicly available on gov.uk.
The independent chair of the AMSC was appointed through open and fair competition via a public appointments process. The AMSC has a majority of independent members who were recruited for their working knowledge of HM Armed Forces; experience of public service; experience of assessment and decision-making. It is important that members of the Sub-Committee advising on the award of military honours have relevant knowledge and experience. Members are required to declare any conflicts of interest to the AMSC secretariat before any evidence is presented to the AMSC and prior to any discussion of a particular claim taking place.
The AMSC meets regularly to discuss cases. As an independent Sub-Committee, the AMSC may determine for itself which medals claims should be reviewed. I understand that the case for medallic recognition for Nuclear Test Veterans was considered at length by the Sub-Committee.
It is not possible to give specific timings on the duration required for the Sub-Committee to consider a case, as each claim will be different and each case is carefully considered. The details of cases must remain confidential until the decision-making process is final. To preserve the confidentiality of the honours process, the details of decisions are not published. The outcome of AMSC reviews are announced on gov.uk once the advice has been fully assessed, including (where appropriate) via the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals to The Sovereign.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the recruitment processes for the appointment of the (a) Chair and (b) other appointments to the independent Military Advisory Sub-Committee.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The assessment of historic medals claims is a matter for the independent Advisory Military Sub-Committee (AMSC) whose terms of reference are publicly available on gov.uk.
The independent chair of the AMSC was appointed through open and fair competition via a public appointments process. The AMSC has a majority of independent members who were recruited for their working knowledge of HM Armed Forces; experience of public service; experience of assessment and decision-making. It is important that members of the Sub-Committee advising on the award of military honours have relevant knowledge and experience. Members are required to declare any conflicts of interest to the AMSC secretariat before any evidence is presented to the AMSC and prior to any discussion of a particular claim taking place.
The AMSC meets regularly to discuss cases. As an independent Sub-Committee, the AMSC may determine for itself which medals claims should be reviewed. I understand that the case for medallic recognition for Nuclear Test Veterans was considered at length by the Sub-Committee.
It is not possible to give specific timings on the duration required for the Sub-Committee to consider a case, as each claim will be different and each case is carefully considered. The details of cases must remain confidential until the decision-making process is final. To preserve the confidentiality of the honours process, the details of decisions are not published. The outcome of AMSC reviews are announced on gov.uk once the advice has been fully assessed, including (where appropriate) via the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals to The Sovereign.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many death certificates refer to industrial disease in (a) each year since 2010, (b) March and April 2019, and (c) March and April 2020.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond. A copy of the UKSA response has been placed in the library of the House.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many members of staff will be allocated to work for the Office for Veterans' Affairs.
Answered by Johnny Mercer
There are 8 members of staff working in the Office for Veterans’ Affairs with more staff, who have already been recruited, joining shortly. Plans to increase the Office for Veterans’ Affairs beyond its current size are in place with recruitment due to begin shortly. Future increases in the size of the Office will be determined by the capacity it needs to ensure the United Kingdom becomes the best place to be a veteran anywhere in the world. Beyond the Office for Veterans’ Affairs there are many Civil Servants across Government Departments working everyday to support this country’s veterans.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if the Government’s Strategy for Our Veterans will classify the very seriously injured as a priority group.
Answered by Johnny Mercer
The Strategy for Our Veterans is inclusive of all veterans who access UK services, covering all experiences, conflicts and circumstances. As the Government works towards delivering the Strategy, it may be appropriate to provide certain cohorts of veterans with particular types of focused support to recognise their specific experiences or circumstances. As detailed within the Strategy for our Veterans UK Government Consultation Response, the Government already provides bespoke services to support the very seriously injured, such as the Integrated Personal Commissioning for Veterans (IPC4V) framework and benefit cap exemptions.