Asked by: Margaret Beckett (Labour - Derby South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much from the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund has been allocated to the Libya bilateral programme for the 2022-23 financial year.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Libya Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) Programme was allocated £6.6 million in financial year 2022-2023, of which £6 million was Official Development Assistance (ODA) and £0.6 million Non-ODA.
Asked by: Margaret Beckett (Labour - Derby South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many constituents in Derby South were affected by the error in ESA payments, following the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman recent investigation.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The Department published an update on the exercise to correct past ESA underpayments on Gov.uk on 8 July 2021. This reported that as of 1 June 2021, of the 600,000 cases checked, 118,000 arrears payments have been made totalling £613 million. This report showed the numbers of cases paid arrears at a national level only as the data was not available at sub-national level at that time. The Department is investigating the feasibility of providing this analysis at a constituency level.
Asked by: Margaret Beckett (Labour - Derby South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women were known to be pregnant while (a) on remand or (b) serving a sentence in HMP Foston Hall set out by ethnicity in each quarter from 31 March 2015 to 30 September 2020.
Answered by Alex Chalk - Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice
We do not currently publish pregnancy data routinely.
As part of our fundamental review of policy relating to mothers and expectant mothers in prison, we have committed to providing national pregnancy data in future.
Further information on the review, including our findings and resulting reforms regarding data collection, can be found in our summary report published in July 2020: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/905559/summary-report-of-review-of-policy-on-mbu.pdf
Asked by: Margaret Beckett (Labour - Derby South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with the management and unions of Rolls-Royce on (a) the effect on the supply chain and (b) other effects of a shutdown in production; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government has regular engagement with Rolls-Royce on a wide range of issues, including to understand the impact of COVID-19 on its business, employees and UK supply chain and how best to help them through the crisis and into recovery.
Temporarily closing facilities is a commercial decision for Rolls-Royce and I understand the company is currently consulting with Union and Employee representatives around these proposals.
Asked by: Margaret Beckett (Labour - Derby South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has had discussions with representatives of Rolls Royce on measures to support the manufacturing sector to manage the financial effect of the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
The Government is committed to supporting companies through the COVID-19 crisis and has worked with many businesses across the economy to understand how best to do so, including Rolls-Royce.
The Government has been in close discussions with Rolls-Royce on the various business support schemes available to the business and its suppliers. Through the Aerospace Growth Partnership , the company has also fed into the Government’s dialogue with the wider aerospace sector about business support.
Asked by: Margaret Beckett (Labour - Derby South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to implement the forthcoming cyber security skills strategy; and what plans his Department has to consult the devolved Administrations on that strategy.
Answered by Margot James
Government is committed to publishing a Cyber Security Skills Strategy by the end of 2018. We are working with Devolved Administrations on the development of the Strategy and the document will set out our approach to implementation and next steps. In the meantime, government continues to deliver a range of initiatives designed to boost cyber security skills in the UK.
Asked by: Margaret Beckett (Labour - Derby South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to tackle the cost to local authorities of agency social workers.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
Local authorities receive funds through local taxes, fees and charges, as well as through central government. Local authorities are best placed to take decisions on spend for social care based on local priorities. In response to calls for further funding to tackle the immediate pressures, the Local Government Finance Settlement increased the dedicated funding available for social care through increased flexibility around the social care precept and with a new dedicated £240 million Adult Social Care Support Grant in 2017 to 2018, distributed according to relative need.
Asked by: Margaret Beckett (Labour - Derby South)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which regions have used regional memoranda of understanding in order to manage the cost of agency social workers.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
This information is not held by the department.
Asked by: Margaret Beckett (Labour - Derby South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of memoranda of understanding and regional agreements in managing the costs of agency social workers.
Answered by Edward Timpson
The Department for Education recognises the costs associated with the use of agency social workers. The department welcomes the efforts made by local authorities through regional memoranda of understanding to improve the deployment, and manage the costs, of agency social workers. The department has not conducted an assessment of their effectiveness or of the effect on local authority expenditure. Similarly, the department has not carried out an assessment of a national cap on agency social worker fees.
Asked by: Margaret Beckett (Labour - Derby South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing a national cap on agency social worker fees.
Answered by Edward Timpson
The Department for Education recognises the costs associated with the use of agency social workers. The department welcomes the efforts made by local authorities through regional memoranda of understanding to improve the deployment, and manage the costs, of agency social workers. The department has not conducted an assessment of their effectiveness or of the effect on local authority expenditure. Similarly, the department has not carried out an assessment of a national cap on agency social worker fees.