First elected: 5th May 2005
Left House: 23rd January 2017 (Resignation (Northstead))
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
These initiatives were driven by Jamie Reed, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
Jamie Reed has not introduced any legislation before Parliament
Jamie Reed has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting
The Speaker’s Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (SCIPSA) is not responsible for creating HR policies for MPs’ staff. Its remit is to consider candidates proposed by the Speaker for the posts of Chair and members of the Authority, following fair and open competition, and to approve IPSA's annual estimate of resources.
MPs are the legal employers of their staff. It is for them to use their discretion to provide their staff with caring leave. The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority provides template contracts for MPs to use with their staff. These allow for up to five days at full pay for time off work to deal with unforeseen circumstances and emergencies involving a dependant.
Ramps for wheelchair users are currently available on the estate for visitors and more can be made available to facilitate access to Members’ offices. The Managing Director of In-House Services will be happy to speak to any hon. Members about their individual needs.
The historic nature of the parliamentary estate means that newer buildings are more accessible than the older buildings for wheelchair users and people who need step-free access. While no estimate can be given of the number of rooms, those in Portcullis House and certain of the outbuildings have greater accessibility than the Palace and Norman Shaw buildings. Improving accessibility is being addressed as part of the Restoration and Renewal and Northern Estate Programmes, as well as the ongoing work across the estate.
Step-free access, as well as other access requirements, are a priority for the Commission. This year, we participated in the Business Disability Forum’s Disability Standard, which measures organisations against 10 criteria, including premises and adjustments. We increased our score from 42% in 2013 to 83%, achieving Silver accreditation. We have upgraded our membership of the BDF to Partner member, in order to make faster progress in becoming a ‘disability-smart’ organisation.
According to the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), there were 1.26 million people employed as “science, research, engineering and technology professionals” in April 2016; and of this 1.26 million, 227,000 are female (18%).
This data is published by the Office for National Statistics at the following link: https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/bulletins/annualsurveyofhoursandearnings/2016provisionalresults
The Government is committed to increasing the number of women working at all levels in the STEM industries. That is why we are supporting girls to choose STEM subjects and careers by improving the quality of teaching of STEM subjects, increasing the proportion of girls’ A-level entries in maths and science. We are also raising awareness of STEM careers through the STEM ambassadors and publishing ‘Your Daughter’s Future’, online guidance to help parents support their daughter’s career choices.
The 2015/16 provisional results show that 12,000 more girls sat A-Levels in STEM subjects compared to 2010.
This data is published by the Department for Education at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/a-level-and-other-level-3-results-2015-to-2016-provisional
We have regular discussions with fellow members of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG), which includes the US, France and regional partners, about our strategy for tackling Daesh. The most recent ministerial meeting of the ISSG took place in Vienna on 14 November. We expect that a further meeting will take place in December. Such fora are an important means making steps towards the common goal of achieving a political solution to the Syria crisis and the defeat of ISIL. We will continue to play a leading, active role as a member of the ISSG.
Coalition airstrikes have been on-going since September 2014. Airstrikes may cause some local level internal displacement and disruption; but it is the conflict that is the main cause of suffering and displacement of civilians in Syria.
The UK has been at the forefront of the response to the crisis in Syria and the region. We have pledged over £1.1 billion, our largest ever response to a single humanitarian crisis. We are the second largest bilateral donor after the US. UK support has reached hundreds of thousands of people in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt. By the end of June 2015, UK support inside Syria and in the surrounding region had, for example, delivered almost 20 million food rations that feed one person for a month; over 2.5 million medical consultations; and relief items for 4.6 million people.
The UK is supporting refugees to remain in host countries in the region, and supporting host countries to accommodate them As part of this, we are working in partnership with host countries to help them to expand job and education opportunities for refugees in a way that will enable them to better support themselves and give them skills for the future, and we are helping host countries to cope with the impact of refugees on local services.
We will continue the work parallel with proposals to expand military operations in the country.
Coalition airstrikes have been on-going since September 2014. Airstrikes may cause some local level internal displacement and disruption; but it is the conflict that is the main cause of suffering of civilians in Syria. In Syria, the UN carries out regular humanitarian contingency planning exercises including preparing for the impact of military operations.
To date, the UK has allocated £559 million to support refugees in the region and vulnerable host communities, including £304 million in Lebanon, £193 million in Jordan and the remainder across the region.
The UK is very concerned about the plight of the Syrian people. This is why the Prime Minister announced on 16 November that the UK, Kuwait, Norway, Germany and the UN will co-host an international conference on the Syria crisis in London on 4 February 2016. The Conference aims to raise significant new funding to meet the needs of all those affected by crisis within Syria and to support neighbouring countries, who have shown enormous generosity in hosting refugees, to cope with the impact of the crisis. The Conference will aim to raise both emergency and long-term funding for 2016 and subsequent years.
Freezing the repayment threshold will not affect the cost of attending university. It will mean that students, once earning, will on average meet a greater share of these costs over their working life through loan repayments, helping ensure the long-term financial sustainability of the system. Lower earning graduates below the repayment threshold will not be affected by the proposed changes.
Estimates of the impact of freezing the repayment thresholds are illustrated in the consultation document, which has been published here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/freezing-the-student-loan-repayment-threshold
It is not for central government to assess local skills needs. Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) are working in collaboration with local authorities, colleges and providers in the area to jointly agree key local skill needs and develop a local skills offer that is responsive to local labour market conditions and contributes to improving our productivity.
Cumbria LEP and the Cumbria Employment and Skills Commission are currently refreshing the area skills strategy and this will be finalised in December 2015. It will include a review of the skills needs of the four key sectors denoted in the Cumbria Strategic Economic Plan: Nuclear and Energy; Advanced Manufacturing; Rural and Visitor Economy; and, Infrastructure Improvements. The Skills Commission has noted that the future skills needs of the nuclear sector and BAE Systems Submarine will create significant pressure for skilled labour, particularly in advanced manufacturing and engineering. This will create displacement challenges in other manufacturing businesses in the area.
In September the government announced a programme of area reviews, which will be locally led and will involve key stakeholders. They will be based on the best available evidence of skills requirements and establish a local post-16 education and training offer which is high quality and responsive to employer need. The reviews will support local involvement in the ongoing commissioning of provision, putting responsibility in the hands of people who are best placed to tailor provision to local economic needs. Cumbria will be included in the area review process, due to be completed by March 2017 and an announcement on the date for the review will be announced in due course.
Information on Apprenticeship starts by Parliamentary constituency and Local Education Authority since 2005/06, broken down by Sector Subject Area, is published online:
Information is collected by Sector Subject Area, not by business sector.
The Government’s 2014 survey of apprentices showed that around 90% of apprentices are employed on completion of training, including 2% who were self-employed. 70% are full time, 18% are part time.
Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apprenticeships-evaluation-learner-survey-2014
Figures for (a) Copeland constituency and (b) Cumbria and dating back 6 years are not collected.
The UK Government remains open to any credible option that offers the best value for money to the taxpayer. The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) are undertaking work for us to:
1) gain further understanding of reuse options (reuse as MOX and assessment of the credible alternatives PRISM and Candu);
2) continue to develop the immobilisation option; and
3) establish potential approaches to acquisition and procurement.
We are expecting the NDA to complete this work by early 2015. When this information has been collated, DECC will begin the necessary Government process to decide whether or not to proceed into a formal selection process. When the Government is confident that its preferred option could be implemented safely and securely, that it is affordable, deliverable, and offers value for money, it will be in a position to proceed.
The nuclear industry is in detailed discussions with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. A working group has been established and this group is working to ensure that proposals for the National College for Nuclear meets the higher level skills needs of the industry and that the new National Colleges fits within the existing networks for tackling skills shortages in the industry, including the National Skills Academy Nuclear and the Nuclear Industry Council Skills Workstream.
The 2013 Nuclear Industrial Strategy set out Government and Industry’s joint ambitions to meet the rising demand for nuclear skills in the UK by identifying future skills shortages and establishing training programmes to address them.
The Nuclear Industry Council’s (NIC) skills workstream oversees this work and has a detailed assessment of the current and projected future nuclear workforce skills demands across the UK, allowing it to take action to address key future gaps. The latest version of this, the Nuclear Workforce Assessment 2014, was issued in November.
The NIC workstream, nuclear developers and skills bodies, the latter acting collectively through the Nuclear Energy Skills Alliance, have developed a raft of initiatives to tackle the skills shortages identified by earlier NWAs.
The new funding of up to £60 million (subject to business case) for the National Nuclear Users Facility (NNUF) will enhance the previously funded nuclear systems research facilities and allow capital investment to boost UK excellence in other key areas of nuclear energy science, engineering and technology. It will help cement the relationships between the academic research community, national laboratories and users in industry, as well as giving people the experience and skills to be internationally competitive civil nuclear energy leaders.
Final Approved answer to 20054
UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) has a close relationship with NNL who are integral partners in the development and implementation of a UK Civil Nuclear Export strategy, being taken forward under the Nuclear Industrial Strategy, to target the most promising overseas opportunities for the UK nuclear industry. NNL also regularly support and participate in UKTI’s related programme of civil nuclear focussed inward and outward trade missions. This partnership has contributed to NNL success abroad.
Longer-term commercial opportunities can stem from international collaboration on R&D. For example, NNL is involved in the Nugenia project which includes R&D on new and innovative designs in nuclear fission. They are also leading UK participation in the Jules Horowitz Reactor project in France on behalf of the Government, and have engaged with USA government on a number of issues, such as advanced recycle R&D and radioisotope thermoelectric generations for space batteries.
The funding available for Adult Skills is outlined in the Skills Funding Statement. The statement sets out the Government’s priorities for the budget and it is for providers to decide how they use their adult skills funding to reflect those priorities and meet the needs of learners and employers in their local area.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skills-funding-statement-2013-to-2016
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skills-funding-statement-2012-2015
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
The Government is committed to addressing any barriers that prevent UK steel suppliers from competing effectively for public sector contracts.
The Government adopted new rules on public procurement last year to offer greater flexibility around social and economic considerations, alongside best value for money, in Government procurement activities.
In line with this, all departments are required to implement new guidelines, which we published on 30 October, on how government buyers should source steel for major projects so that the true value of UK steel is taken into account in major procurement decisions.
Individual Departments are responsible for making their own reductions to their use of paper, including as part of the Greening Government Commitments. The Cabinet Office’s own use of paper in 2015/16 to date has reduced by around 60% against the 2009/10 baseline. This reduction has been achieved including through the use of more flexible laptop-based IT and electronic records systems which means that printing requirements have reduced considerably.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
We have substantially reformed government communications since the 2010 General Election, abolishing the Central Office of Information and ensuring that Government communications activity is better coordinated and more effective.
Information on individual Departments spend on advertising is not held centrally.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
The information requested on the number of advertising slots is not held centrally but overall spending on communications has been reduced 65% since 2009/10.
We are exploring options for supporting bereaved parents in employment. The death of a child is traumatic and deeply upsetting for any parent, so it is easy to see why some time away from work may be needed.
High quality infrastructure is essential for a successful industrial strategy. Through support for Heathrow, the Government is taking decisive action to secure the UK’s place in the global aviation market by building strong connections with global partners securing jobs and business opportunities for the next decade and beyond. This is a further step in a series of major infrastructure investment decisions.
We welcome Heathrow’s commitment to ensuring that UK suppliers for steel can access tender opportunities, and its adoption of government's steel procurement guidance. Heathrow estimates it will need 370,000 tonnes of steel to build its new terminals, equivalent to building 30 Shards. A new runway at Heathrow will be a major boost for the UK economy, and underlines that this government is taking action to secure the UK’s place in the global aviation market. This will secure jobs and business opportunities for the next decade and beyond.
The Government remains committed to tackling climate change and to the UK’s Climate Change Act. Climate change remains one of the most serious long-term risks to our economic and national security. We have already made good progress towards our goal, with the first carbon budget covering 2008 to 2012 being met. Provisional statistics indicate that UK emissions in 2015 were 38% lower than in 1990, and 3% below those in 2014.
We are looking ahead to our emissions reduction plan which will set out how we will reduce emissions through the 2020s, keeping us on track for our 2050 target.
The Minister responsible for matters relating to the Civil Nuclear Constabulary, my noble Friend the Minister of State for Energy and Intellectual Property, is meeting with the hon. Member on 19 October, and will be meeting with the Civil Nuclear Police Federation on 3 November.
Government policy is for public sector workers to have a normal pension age equal and linked to the state pension age. Parliament defined ‘members of a police force’ in the Public Service Pensions Act 2013 in such a way as to exclude Civil Nuclear Constabulary officers from the special arrangements that were made for Home Office police forces under that Act. A recent High Court judgement confirmed this interpretation. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy will work with the Civil Nuclear Police Authority to put in place the appropriate pension arrangements for Civil Nuclear Constabulary officers, within the parameters set out in the legislation.
Under the current energy market framework, the development of the transmission network in England and Wales is a matter for National Grid, and this includes assessment of the costs of any particular route or approach on specific projects, such as for the proposed North West Coast Connections. National Grid’s costs are regulated by Ofgem to ensure they are justified and efficient.
The grant of planning consent for any energy project, including new transmission assets, would be considered by my rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy under the Planning Act 2008, but the proposed project has not reached that stage.
It will be for the developer to bring forward an application for consent for their proposal for examination by the Planning Inspectorate. My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State will take the decision on the application and it would not be appropriate for him to comment on the merits of the project in advance of his decision.
The application for the Project will be considered as part of the appropriate consent process which will take account of any Government policies and guidance, including that set out in National Policy Statements and other material considerations. Overarching National Policy Statement for Energy (EN-1) sets out policy for energy developments proposed within nationally designated landscapes.
As my rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State will be responsible for determining the application for consent for the proposed North West Coast Connection Project, it would not be appropriate for him to meet with Millom Without Parish Council to discuss the merits of the project.
The application for this project is expected to be submitted by National Grid to the Planning Inspectorate in 2017. During the pre-application stage, the Parish Council and other interested parties can get involved in the consultation process. When the application is lodged, the Parish Council will be able to make representations on it. The Planning Inspectorate can provide advice about the planning process for the project and advice about the process in general is available on its website: https://infrastructure.planninginspectorate.gov.uk/application-process/the-process/
The Minister responsible for matters relating to the Civil Nuclear Constabulary has agreed to meet with all parties to discuss the pension age of Civil Nuclear Constabulary officers.
We are putting consumers at the heart of the heat network programme.
DECC published the Heat Network Investment Project consultation last week[1]. The consultation explicitly says one of the key criteria for receiving funding will be value for money for consumers. We are also consulting on whether to make our support conditional on schemes signing up to Heat Trust and the ADE/CIBSE Code of Practice. The consultation closes on 3 August.
[1] Heat Networks Investment Project: www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/532483/HNIP_consultation_vFINAL.pdf
This information is not held centrally.
The Government aims to maximise the supply chain, skills and infrastructure opportunities from new nuclear development for host communities. DECC chairs fora in both West Cumbria and Somerset that bring together senior stakeholders, including local and central Government. During construction of a nuclear plant, local communities receive funding from the developer through a mechanism in the Development Consent Order. We also encourage communities to bid for Government funding to capitalise on new nuclear opportunities, such as the upcoming Growth Deal 3. In 2013 the Government announced a Community Benefit package for new nuclear host communities once a plant begins operating. This totals £1000 per megawatt of capacity for each year of the plant’s initial life.
The government supports heat networks because, in the right circumstances and where efficiently operated, they can provide a cheaper, lower carbon heating solution than separate heating systems in individual dwellings. We know that not all existing heat networks meet these conditions. Consumer confidence will be vital to enable the sector to grow.
DECC wants to see the development of schemes that do not detrimentally affect their customers and we have made clear that any funding provided through DECC’s Heat Network Investment Project will need to demonstrate this in the consultation document published today www.gov.uk/government/consultations/consultation-on-the-heat-networks-investment-project-hnip.
We have also been working closely with industry on the development of ‘Heat Trust’, a voluntary consumer protection scheme for heat network customers and on the development of the Heat Network Code of Practice, which sets minimum standards for the design, installation and operation of heat networks. More details can be found on these initiatives here:
Heat Trust was launched on 25 November 2015. Heat Trust is a voluntary, industry-led scheme established with the aim of setting consumer protection standards for heat network suppliers.
Since its launch, Heat Trust has grown with 42 schemes in membership covering over 22,300 connections. All the schemes in membership are named on the Heat Trust website: http://www.heattrust.org/index.php/members
For the first time, domestic and micro-business customers on these networks have direct recourse to the independent Energy Ombudsman. 19 customers have used the Ombudsman Service so far. The Ombudsman has upheld two complaints in the customer’s favour and one reached a mutually accepted solution.
DECC sits on the Heat Trust Committee, which provides oversight of the scheme. We will continue to monitor the development of Heat Trust closely over the coming months.
The Government has no current plans to quantify the number of paid and unpaid interns. There is no legal definition of an intern, but all those who qualify as ‘workers’ are entitled to the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage.
The Government has no plans to create a legal or standard definition of an internship.
Depending on the reality of the employment relationship an intern could be classed as a worker, an employee or a volunteer.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my rt. hon Friend the Secretary of State to the Hon. Member for Greenwich and Woolwich on 19 November 2015, Official Report Column 813-814:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201516/cmhansrd/cm151119/debtext/151119-0001.htm
The Department does not routinely collect data on government funding for research in specific disease areas or conditions. However, information on spending on research into cancer, including research on brain tumours, is collected by the National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI), a UK-wide partnership between the government, charity and industry which promotes co-operation in cancer research among the 22 member organisations.
Information on all Research Council and Innovate UK research funding is published on the RCUK Gateway to Research (http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk/).