Asked by: Nick Harvey (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether any official in his Department amended, or caused to be amended, the report of the Internal Audit Investigation Team which visited the London School of Science and Technology between 30 June and 2 July 2014; who made such amendments; and what amendments were so made.
Answered by Greg Clark
The text of the published report is exclusively the responsibility of the investigating office.
Asked by: Nick Harvey (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, when his Department plans to make a decision about future funding of students and recognition of courses at the 23 private colleges which it suspended from recruiting further students in November 2014.
Answered by Greg Clark
The Department required all alternative providers to reapply to have their courses designated for student support for the 2014/15 academic year. All alternative providers, including those that had their designations suspended for the remainder of the 2013/14 academic year, are being reviewed against the new criteria, and have already received a final decision or have been invited to submit additional information.
Asked by: Nick Harvey (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what guidance his Department has issued to the 23 private colleges which it suspended from recruiting further students in November 2013 on their ability to advertise and recruit students to commence courses in September 2014.
Answered by Greg Clark
The Department required all alternative providers to reapply to have their courses designated for student support for the 2014/15 academic year. All alternative providers, including those that had their designations suspended for the remainder of the 2013/14 academic year, were told that they should not advertise their courses as attracting student support until such time as these course had been redesignated.
Asked by: Nick Harvey (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of proposed closures of HM Revenue and Customs' enquiry centres on people in Devon, Cornwall and Somerset.
Answered by David Gauke
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) launched a new service across the UK on 29 May 2014 to support people who need extra help in getting their tax and benefits right. This replaced HMRC’s network of 281 Enquiry Centre’s which closed to the public on 30 June 2014.
The decision to make this change was based on extensive evaluation from independent customer research, a 10-week public consultation exercise and a successful pilot of the new service which took place in the North East of England involving the closure of 13 Enquiry Centres from June to Dec 2013.
The evaluation assessed the impact and effect on rural areas, transport links and costs to customers.
The new service is more accessible to these communities, since customers are able to arrange appointments with HMRC at locations convenient to them, this includes visits to their home if appropriate.
Asked by: Nick Harvey (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his Department's regional location strategy for HM Revenue and Customs offices is up to 2020.
Answered by David Gauke
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is reshaping to become a smaller, more highly skilled organisation to meet the efficiencies required by the Spending Reviews, 2010 and 2013.
Its strategic intention is to move to fewer, larger regional centres, supplemented by other offices to provide specialist resources or touch down facilities for mobile staff. HMRC is considering what the offices of the future will look like and where they will be located. It is currently involving all staff in a national conversation on progress and expects more detail to be available at the end of 2015.
In 2012 HMRC gave a commitment to retaining a presence in 16 key centres until at least 2020.
Asked by: Nick Harvey (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what plans he has to widen access to and inclusion in further and higher education for mature, disadvantaged and other harder to reach students.
Answered by Greg Clark
This Government has been very clear about the importance of widening participation and improving fair access in higher education – all those with the ability should have access to higher education, irrespective of family income.
In April we published the new National strategy for access and student success. It will help to ensure that all those with the potential to benefit from higher education have equal opportunity to participate and succeed. Our reforms and new funding methodology have ensured that institutions are investing significantly in widening student access to higher education. Through their access agreements with the Office for Fair Access, institutions plan by 2018/19 to increase their spending on outreach, student success and student financial support measures to £735 million, up from £444 million in 2011/12.
Similarly it is important that young people and adults from disadvantaged groups are able to access good quality further education and skills training to help them to find employment, participate in their local community and to lead a more independent life.
We provide ‘Learning Support’ funding to colleges and providers to help people with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. We support unemployed people into work by funding units and qualifications in vocational skills, and we fully fund all adults to achieve their first English and maths GCSE. We contribute £210 million a year to support non-formal Community Learning, attracting disadvantaged groups and mature learners who have had very few previous opportunities to engage in education.
Asked by: Nick Harvey (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what plans his Department has for increasing the role of private colleges in provision of further and higher education; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Greg Clark
In September 2014 the Department will invite both new and existing alternative providers to apply to have new courses designated so that their students may have access for student support in the 2015/16 academic year. There will also be an additional opportunity for providers to apply in February 2015. For the 2015/16 academic year we will allow student numbers at high quality alternative providers to be freed from student number controls in a similar manner as for HEFCE-funded provision, but we will continue to retain a control on numbers at higher risk provision.
Asked by: Nick Harvey (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will establish a scheme to provide affordable insurance cover for leasehold dwellings and small businesses in areas at high risk of flooding modelled on the existing Flood Re scheme for freehold dwellings.
Answered by Dan Rogerson
The Government has been advised by the insurance industry that those leaseholders in high risk areas who will not be eligible for Flood Re will still be able to access affordable insurance. Insurers will also continue to provide insurance to small businesses in areas of high flood risk on a competitive basis.
Based on current evidence, Flood Re would not be an appropriate scheme for leasehold properties and small businesses in areas at a high risk of flooding.
Government has separately commissioned research into the commercial insurance market as part of its evidence gathering.
Asked by: Nick Harvey (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what allowance his Department makes for the proportion of mature, disadvantage and harder to reach students any college has on its student rolls when assessing the adequacy of the college's student attendance rates.
Answered by Nick Boles
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has no role in assessing the adequacy of student attendance rates in further education (FE) colleges.
The Government’s school and college inspection body, Ofsted, in their judgement on a college’s outcome from learners may comment on low attendance and punctuality as an area for improvement and will look at how a college’s achievement gaps are narrowing between different groups of learners.
Where Ofsted rate a college inadequate, BIS will take intervention action.
Asked by: Nick Harvey (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when RAF enlistment papers and information given to prospective recruits will be updated to reflect the extended discharge as of right for recruits enlisting under the age of 18 years old, as introduced in the Armed Forces (Terms of Service) (Amendment) Regulations 2011.
Answered by Anna Soubry
The RAF's enlistment paperwork was updated immediately after the Amendment in 2011 and continues correctly to reflect the rights for discharge of airmen under 18 years of age.