Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to nationalise British Steel.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Nationalisation would change the ownership of the plant, but not how it operates. It would require the Government to take on the company’s outstanding financial obligations and may not provide the necessary legal security and protection for taxpayers’ investment.
Once nationalised, in line with strict state aid rules for steel, the Government would have to act in the same was as any private owner, thinking principally of making a profit.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the timeframe is for compensation to be made available to people who were entitled to a severe disability premium payment and who claimed universal credit before 16 January 2019.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Since the introduction of The Universal Credit (Transitional Provisions) (SDP Gateway) Amendment Regulations 2019, which came into force on 16th January 2019, claimants who are entitled, or have been within the last month, to an award of an existing benefit that includes SDP have not been required to move to Universal Credit; even if they have experienced a relevant change in their circumstances. The draft Universal Credit (Managed Migration Pilot and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019, which are currently before Parliament, make provision for SDP transitional payments for those eligible claimants who have already moved to UC and for moving existing legacy claimants onto Universal Credit and implementing transitional protection.
We are currently considering the court judgment handed down on 3 May 2019.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to prevent taxi drivers from refusing to take passengers with guide dogs.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
Sections 168 and 170 of the Equality Act 2010 already require taxi and PHV drivers to accept passengers accompanied by assistance dogs without charging them extra. The Government expects drivers to comply with the law and encourages local licensing authorities to take robust action against those unwilling to do so. Drivers convicted of a relevant offence face fines of up to £1000.
The Government is considering what further action might be required to eliminate illegal discrimination against assistance dog owners, and has accepted the recommendation of the Chair of the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and PHV licensing that drivers should be required to complete disability awareness training through the introduction of National Minimum Standards. We will bring forward legislation when Parliamentary time permits.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will reduce beer duty in Budget 2019.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
This government remains clear in its support for consumers, pubs and breweries, and we have taken action to this end – ensuring the price of a pint of beer is 14p is lower than it otherwise would have been since ending the beer duty escalator in 2013.
All taxes are kept under review and the impact of a change to beer duty is considered at each fiscal event, including its effect on pubs and the wider economy.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress he has made on the review into 1.6 million personal independent payment claims.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The administrative exercise to check whether claimants are eligible for more support under Personal Independence Payments, following the MH and RJ legal judgments, started in June 2018. DWP published management information on progress on checking potentially affected cases in December 2018. These figures showed that around 140,000 cases had been reviewed and cleared (as at 23rd November 2018). Figures are changing rapidly as we continue to check cases and progress is in line with our expectations. As part of December’s release, we committed to providing further updates at 6 monthly intervals.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance her Department issues to GPs on the provision of fit notes for patients who are undergoing an appeal for employment and support allowance.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department provides guidance on the benefits system for GPs which is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-short-guide-to-the-benefit-system-for-general-practitioners.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what financial incentives are available to his Department to help increase the number of people applying for medicine courses.
Answered by Stephen Hammond
The Government does not consider that there is a requirement for national financial incentives as undergraduate medicine is a competitive subject to gain entry to. For 2018/19 entry, there were around three applicants to every place. Universities and medical schools may choose to offer local scholarships or financial awards to students which would cover or contribute to the cost of tuition fees. These may be targeted to students that are currently under-represented in medical education.
More generally, all higher education providers wishing to charge higher level fees must have an access and participation plan agreed with the Office for Students. In these plans, providers must set out the measures they intend to put in place to support students from disadvantaged backgrounds and under-represented groups to access and then successfully participate in higher education.
For the first four years of an undergraduate medical degree, eligible students can access from Student Finance England (SFE) tuition fee support, a loan for living costs and other supplementary grants if applicable. From the fifth year of their course, medical students are able to apply for the National Health Service bursary to help with tuition fees and living costs. They can also apply for a non-means tested reduced rate living cost loan from SFE in the fifth year of their course.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he plans to announce proposals for the future of the probation system.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Last year, we announced our decision to end current Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) contracts early. Following this, we launched a consultation, Strengthening Probation, Building Confidence, and engaged with stakeholders and the market on the future of the probation system.
We are currently considering options for future delivery arrangements and reflecting carefully on the balance of public, private and voluntary sector involvement. It is important that we take the time to get this decision right. We will aim to publish a formal response to our consultation, detailing our future plans later this year.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if his Department will reopen the compensation scheme for Equitable Life victims.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Since 2010, we have taken more action than any previous government to resolve this issue by allocating up to £1.5bn, tax free, for payment to affected policyholders. There are no plans to allocate any further funds to the Equitable Life Payment Scheme, or reopen it.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to support convenience retailers in Warrington South that have lost an estimated £133,145 due to shop theft.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
All forms of retail crime are unacceptable, and everyone has the right to feel safe at work.
I chair the National Retail Crime Steering Group (NRCSG) which brings together partners including the police, trade bodies – including the Association of Convenience Stores - and retailers and is overseeing a range of work to tackle retail crime. This includes the collation and dissemination of good practice and developing guidance on the use of Impact Statements for Business, which give victims of business crime the opportunity to set out the impact the crime has had on the business, including, for example, financial loss. The NRCSG also continues to work with retailers to improve the management and response to shop theft using a partnership approach according to local circumstances.
On 21 January I announced that we will launch a call for evidence on violence and abuse towards shop workers to strengthen our understanding of this issue, including how existing legislation is being applied.
In addition, the Sentencing Council is reviewing its guidelines on assault and a consultation on a revised guideline is anticipated to commence this Summer.