Asked by: Edward Argar (Conservative - Charnwood)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if (a) his Department and (b) National Highways will make an assessment of the potential merits of road safety junction improvement works at the A46 Seagrave-Thanington cross-over in Leicestershire.
Answered by Karl McCartney
Following the developer-led junction improvement scheme that was delivered in February this year for the new Leicester City Football Club training ground, a Stage 3 Road Safety Audit was carried out at this location. The designers of the scheme are currently developing an additional package of works to address the issues identified that relate to the right turn movement of traffic from Park Hill Lane onto the A46. Until these works are undertaken, the network remains under the jurisdiction of Leicester City Football Club.
Asked by: Edward Argar (Conservative - Charnwood)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of delivery to date of (a) service improvements and (b) investment in new rolling stock as set out in the East Midlands 2019 rail franchise agreement.
Answered by Wendy Morton
A new dedicated electric train service between Corby and London St Pancras, with frequency doubled to two train per hour has been delivered, enabling peak time long distance services to and from London to be accelerated. The new fleet of bi-mode long distance trains, committed to as part of the East Midlands 2019 rail franchise agreement, are under construction and should enter service in the next couple of years.
As a result of the impact of the pandemic, the Department are negotiating to replace the 2019 franchise agreement with a directly awarded National Rail Contract which will enable more flexibility to develop service and rolling stock plans that reflect the changes to travel habits that the pandemic caused.
Asked by: Edward Argar (Conservative - Charnwood)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent assessment he has made of progress on reviewing the funding formula for Government funding to local authorities.
Answered by Paul Scully
This Government remains committed to ensuring that funding allocations for councils are based on an up-to-date assessment of their needs and resources. We will continue to work closely with the sector and other stakeholders to look at the challenges and opportunities facing the sector before consulting on any potential changes.
Asked by: Edward Argar (Conservative - Charnwood)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the total capital investment by his Department was in schools in Charnwood constituency in the financial year 2021-22, by school.
Answered by Will Quince
For the 2021/22 financial year, Leicestershire local authority, which covers Charnwood constituency, received a School Condition Allocation (SCA) of £4,090,736 to spend on improving the condition of its maintained schools. As SCA is allocated to responsible bodies, not individual schools, we cannot provide a school or constituency level breakdown of this funding.
Large multi-academy trusts and voluntary-aided school bodies, such as dioceses, also receive SCA. These allocations can cover schools across multiple local authority boundaries, so are not included in the figure above. All SCA funding is published on GOV.UK.
Smaller multi-academy or stand-alone trusts, voluntary-aided schools not part of SCA eligible bodies, and sixth form colleges are instead able to bid to the Condition Improvement Fund (CIF) each year. In the 2021-22 CIF round, there were six successful projects across four schools in Charnwood, totalling £1,110,079.52.
There were three projects included in the second phase of the Priority School Building Programme (PSBP2) in Charnwood Constituency. They are: Highcliffe Primary School and Community Centre, The Cedars Academy, and Bishop Ellis Catholic Voluntary Academy. All three projects began prior to the financial year 2021/22 and were handed over before the start of the financial year, with one school, The Cedars Academy, completing construction in the financial year 2021/22. These schools have benefitted from a combined total of £17,845,842 of funding.
Asked by: Edward Argar (Conservative - Charnwood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the viability of extending BRCA testing to all women over 30 on request.
Answered by Steve Brine
NHS England currently commissions Medical Genetics Services to provide BRCA testing in accordance with a published clinical commissioning policy which is in line with current National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical guidelines. The test is available to women aged 30 and over. Further information is available at the following link:
Asked by: Edward Argar (Conservative - Charnwood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the viability of extending BRCA testing to all women over 30 on request.
Answered by Steve Brine
NHS England currently commissions Medical Genetics Services to provide BRCA testing in accordance with a published clinical commissioning policy which is in line with current National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical guidelines. The test is available to women aged 30 and over. Further information is available at the following link:
Asked by: Edward Argar (Conservative - Charnwood)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the gross value added to the (a) UK and (b) East Midlands economy of (i) international and (ii) county-level cricket in the most recent year for which data is available.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
Sport makes a significant economic contribution to the UK. According to my department’s Sport Satellite Account, in 2016 the value of the sports economy was just over £37 billion (gross value added). I look forward to the upcoming 2019 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in England and Wales, with games taking place in Nottingham.
Asked by: Edward Argar (Conservative - Charnwood)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what new models of financing the repair and maintenance of church buildings are being considered by the Government as part of the pilot scheme under the Taylor Review on the sustainability of English churches and cathedrals.
Answered by Michael Ellis
The Taylor Review: Sustainability of English Churches and Cathedrals, was an independent review that considered how these iconic buildings can become more sustainable and ensure that repair works are undertaken in a timely way. The subsequent pilots are testing, over the next two years, the new model of support proposed by the review.
This involves:
how effective the roles of a Fabric Support Officer and a Community Support Officer can be in both ensuring regular repairs are undertaken and in opening up wider links between listed places of worship and the wider community;
the level of need for a 'minor repairs' and a 'major repairs' fund;
how best practice can be better shared between owners of listed places of worship in ensuring these buildings are properly maintained;
how the Taylor Review model can be applied across all faiths and denominations
Asked by: Edward Argar (Conservative - Charnwood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the recommendations of the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapist report, Bercow: Ten Years, published on 20 March 2018.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
Officials from the Department of Health and Social Care, and the Department for Education are in regular contact and work closely with national and local partners on policy to support children with speech, language and communication needs.
Asked by: Edward Argar (Conservative - Charnwood)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to ensure that practitioners working in alternative provision are able to access schools to identify and support language and communication needs in children.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government recognises the importance of early assessment and identification of pupil needs within mainstream school settings. The Department’s statutory guidance on Alternative Provision (AP) also sets out that commissioners of AP should recognise any issues or barriers experienced by the pupils and carry out a thorough assessment of their needs. The full guidance can be viewed here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/268940/alternative_provision_statutory_guidance_pdf_version.pdf.
On 16 March, the Government published the policy paper ‘Creating Opportunity for All: Our Vision for Alternative Provision’, setting out how it will reform AP. A key element of this paper is the importance of developing and sharing effective practice within AP. The policy paper can be viewed in full here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/690940/Creating_opportunity_for_all.pdf.