Asked by: David Johnston (Conservative - Wantage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the number of care home residents with dementia but without a psychosis diagnosis have been prescribed anti-psychotic drugs in the last 12 months.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
This information is not held in the format requested. The number of people living with dementia but without a diagnosis of psychosis who have been prescribed antipsychotic medication in the last six weeks was 31,451 at the end of February 2023.
Asked by: David Johnston (Conservative - Wantage)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of adding a box for a second parent or guardian on the School Admission Application Form.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The School Admissions Code currently prohibits requiring both parents to sign the Common Application Form when they are applying for a school place for their child. This makes the process easier for families where it may not be possible for two parents to sign the form and ensures that a child is not discriminated against because they only have one parent. It also ensures that a child's family situation is not unlawfully considered in the application process.
In cases where parents are separated and both parents are involved in their child’s upbringing, parents will need to agree between themselves on the school they wish their child to attend and on which parent will sign the application form.
Asked by: David Johnston (Conservative - Wantage)
Question
What priorities he has for his COP26 Presidency year.
Answered by Alok Sharma - COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
Throughout the UK’s Presidency year, we will work with Egypt as the incoming Presidency, and all countries, to deliver on the agreed outcomes in the Glasgow Climate Pact and keep 1.5 in reach.
In doing so we will continue to champion science, especially the IPCC and its major reports in 2022, and the urgency of action on emissions reductions, adaptation, finance to support developing nations and loss and damage.
Asked by: David Johnston (Conservative - Wantage)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of allocating funding to the development of space based solar power.
Answered by George Freeman
A report which includes some of those potential merits is available on the Government website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/space-based-solar-power-de-risking-the-pathway-to-net-zero.
Asked by: David Johnston (Conservative - Wantage)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of including agriculture in the national curriculum.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The National Curriculum already includes topics related to agriculture such as food production, the environment, and types of land use in subjects such as geography, design and technology and science.
In the geography curriculum schools must teach pupils to describe and understand key aspects of human geography, including types of settlement and land use, economic activity including trade links, and the distribution of natural resources including energy, food, minerals and water. This is built upon in secondary schools where pupils are taught to understand how human and physical processes interact to influence and change landscapes, environments and the climate.
In science, pupils are taught to explore the requirements of plants for life and growth and how they vary from plant to plant. Guidance advises schools to support their teaching through the use the local environment throughout the year to observe how plants grow. Pupils should be introduced to the requirements of plants for germination, growth and survival, as well as the processes of reproduction and growth in plants.
The design and technology curriculum states that as part of their work with food, pupils should be taught to understand where food comes from, understand seasonality and know where and how a variety of ingredients are grown, reared, caught and processed.
The National Curriculum is a framework setting out the content of what the Department expects schools to cover in each subject and teachers have the flexibility and freedom to determine how they deliver the content in the way that best meets the needs of their pupils. If teachers wish, they can choose to cover particular topics in greater depth, for example food and farming.
Asked by: David Johnston (Conservative - Wantage)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
What steps his Department is taking to support victims of domestic abuse.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
Domestic abuse is a top priority across Government, and we are determined to transform the response to this abhorrent crime.
We passed our landmark Domestic Abuse Bill on 29 April and our forthcoming Victims’ Bill will further transform victims’ experience of the criminal justice system and we have provided unprecedented funding for domestic abuse since the pandemic began, including £51m boost for specialist support services to support victims through the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
Asked by: David Johnston (Conservative - Wantage)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
What steps his Department is taking to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
My Rt hon Friend the Prime Minister’s 10 Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution will turbo-charge our path to net zero with £12 billion of government investment. Yesterday, we published our ambitious Energy White Paper, and will publish further plans to decarbonise key sectors of the economy ahead of COP26, including our Net Zero Strategy.
Asked by: David Johnston (Conservative - Wantage)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
What steps his Department is taking to introduce problem-solving courts.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
Problem-solving courts, which strengthen the judicial involvement in the oversight of sentences being served in the community, will provide a way to closely manage and rehabilitate those offenders who are frequently both prolific and vulnerable. The MoJ are committed to piloting Problem Solving Courts in up to five locations in the Sentencing White Paper, published 16 September. We will be taking forward the necessary legislative provisions to enable these pilots when Parliamentary time allows.
Pilots, based on international best-practice, will focus on offenders with substance misuse issues, domestic violence offences and female offenders.
The Court Service and Probation Service are closely involved in the design of the pilots, taking into consideration operational resources and the location of the necessary treatment services.
Asked by: David Johnston (Conservative - Wantage)
Question to the Attorney General:
What assessment she has made of the (a) adequacy and (b) effectiveness of the digital capability of the CPS during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Michael Ellis
The CPS successfully enabled almost its entire workforce to move to remote working at the beginning of the Covid-19 outbreak, without business interruption. Working with partners, the CPS has helped the criminal justice system to continue to function throughout the pandemic.
The CPS Inspectorate published a report on the performance of the CPS at the start of the Covid-19 outbreak. It commended the organisation’s digital capability and strategic planning and its foresight in upgrading its digital capabilities.