Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of savings related to PFI contracts in the NHS since 2010.
Answered by Jeremy Hunt - Chancellor of the Exchequer
Since May 2010, £179 million of signed savings on National Health Service private finance initiative (PFI) contracts has been reported by the Department of Health to HM Treasury.
Our reforms have made it illegal for any government to drive the private sector into the NHS as Labour did, as Labour’s PFI deals are costing the NHS more than £1 billion a year.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to widen access to higher education.
Answered by Vince Cable
The most recent UCAS statistics show another record year for university entry for disadvantaged students. 18.2% of 18 year olds from disadvantaged backgrounds obtained a university place via UCAS in 2014.
By 2018/19, Universities expect to spend £735m on bursaries, outreach and supporting retention and student success through their agreements with the Director of Fair Access.
Our reforms have been fair, progressive and given our universities sustainable funding for the future.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to improve the labelling of milk products so that it is easier to identify their country of origin.
Answered by George Eustice
The Secretary of State met with European Commissioners in November to press for better country of origin labelling of milk and milk products. We have been encouraging businesses to volunteer the origin of the liquid milk in dairy products through the UK industry Voluntary Principles on Country of Origin Labelling.
The Commission is due to publish a feasibility report in February on origin labelling of milk and milk products. We expect this be discussed at the 16 March Agriculture and Fisheries Council.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to help dairy farmers to export more milk products.
Answered by George Eustice
Growing UK food exports is a key Defra priority. In 2013 Defra and UKTI launched the ‘UK Food and Drink International Action Plan’. Since the Plan’s launch, 2,500 companies have received UKTI support for exporting, contributing to £305 million of export business won.
The Secretary of State recently visited China, and was accompanied by a range of UK dairy businesses who met Chinese buyers, distributors and retailers. In 2014 the Government championed British food and drink in Dubai (Gulfood), New York (Fancy Foods), Paris (SIAL) and at the Liverpool International Business Festival. We also showcased British food and drink at the Commonwealth Games and Tour de France.
In 2013 we opened 112 markets for animals and animal products contributing to an increase in exports to non-EU markets of £179 million to £1.35 billion. In 2014 we opened over 100 markets including markets for dairy in Madagascar, Morocco and Serbia. We continue to work with industry to extend market access for UK produce.
UK dairy exports now stand at record levels. In nominal terms, the total value of dairy exports has increased by 62% since 2009, driven by price and volume changes. Last year our dairy exports reached £1.3 billion.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Wales Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of cross-border water regulation in England and Wales as it relates to domestic and commercial properties in England supplied by Welsh Water; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Stephen Crabb
The cross-border boundary for water regulation in England and Wales is complex. The Silk Commission acknowledged this in its second report.
The Government is currently considering the recommendations made by the Commission as part of my commitment to reach a political consensus on the way forward on Welsh devolution. This includes the proposal to align the boundary for legislative competence for water with the national border. I will announce the outcome of this work by St David’s Day.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance she has issued to local authorities and police forces on the use of community protection notices to tackle shops that persistently (a) sell prohibited goods to underage persons and (b) sell smuggled or counterfeit tobacco.
Answered by Baroness Featherstone
The Government published statutory guidance on 21 July 2014 for police, local councils, social landlords and others on the use of new anti-social behaviour powers in the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, including the
community protection notice and closure power, which both came into force on 20 October 2014. This is general guidance and does not specifically refer to using the powers to tackle shops that persistently sell prohibited goods to
underage persons or sell smuggled or counterfeit tobacco. However, the closure power can be used to close these premises for up to six months if they are causing nuisance or disorder. The statutory guidance is available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/332839/StatutoryGuidanceFrontline.pdf.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance she has issued to local authorities and police forces on the use of closure orders to tackle shops that persistently (a) sell prohibited goods to underage persons and (b) sell smuggled or counterfeit tobacco.
Answered by Baroness Featherstone
The Government published statutory guidance on 21 July 2014 for police, local councils, social landlords and others on the use of new anti-social behaviour powers in the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, including the
community protection notice and closure power, which both came into force on 20 October 2014. This is general guidance and does not specifically refer to using the powers to tackle shops that persistently sell prohibited goods to
underage persons or sell smuggled or counterfeit tobacco. However, the closure power can be used to close these premises for up to six months if they are causing nuisance or disorder. The statutory guidance is available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/332839/StatutoryGuidanceFrontline.pdf.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the National Citizen Service programmes which ran in summer 2014.
Answered by Rob Wilson
Nationally this summer saw the 120,000th participant in National Citizen Service. The Cabinet Office will publish the full independent evaluation of the 2014 programme in due course.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps he is taking to support community energy schemes.
Answered by Amber Rudd
This Government is committed to supporting the growth of community energy.
The way energy is generated and used in Britain is being transformed: increasing the proportion of home-grown low-carbon generation across different energy sources, while using less through an energy efficiency revolution. This Government is proud of launching the UK’s first Community Energy Strategy in January 2014 and helping communities to be part of driving this transformation.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the ability of solicitors to provide crime duty cover in sparsely populated areas.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
We are committed to continuing reform of the criminal legal aid system. Our proposals will ensure legal aid lawyers will always be available when needed, in all areas, and that people can choose the lawyer they want to help them.