Tag: John Mc Nally

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2015-12-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what plans the Government has to (a) provide financial support and (b) conclude and sign long-term contracts prior to construction in order to achieve the capital investment in energy storage technology necessary to reach the 27.4 gigawatts identified in the Technology Innovation Needs Assessment.

Andrea Leadsom

The Technology Innovation Needs Assessment Summary Report on Electricity Networks and Storage, published by the Low Carbon Innovation Coordination Group in 2012, included an estimated range of 7 – 59GW for the potential level of energy storage which might be deployed in the UK by 2050.

The Government recognises the potential for storage to help use energy more flexibly and to decarbonise the UK energy system cost effectively, alongside other flexible solutions such as interconnection and demand-side response (DSR). In light of this, more than £80m public sector controlled support has been committed to energy storage research, development and demonstration activities since 2012. Innovation is expected to help drive storage costs down further.

DECC is investigating the potential barriers to deployment of energy storage and possible mitigating actions, focussing in the first instance on removing regulatory barriers but also considering whether more needs to be done to stimulate investment in energy storage. DECC will be publishing a call for evidence on this area shortly.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2016-01-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, for what reasons the remit of the proposed Small Business Commissioner does not include businesses in the construction industry; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry

The Small Business Commissioner (SBC) will not consider a complaint which is covered by a statutory right to adjudication; or is within scope of an ombudsman, regulator or another public body.

We do not want the SBC to duplicate existing dispute resolution bodies or schemes, particularly where these are sector specific. Certain disputes arising under a construction contract are covered by a statutory right to adjudication under the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 (the “Construction Act”).

The Government has announced its plans for taking forward a Post Implementation Review of the effectiveness of the “Construction Act” following amendments introduced in 2011 – alongside the review of the practice of cash retention in construction, and is very pleased that the Construction Leadership Council has agreed to oversee this.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2016-01-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to tackle part payment in the construction industry; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Boles

Late payment remains an important issue. The Government is taking significant steps to assist small businesses to recover late payment debts.

The Government promotes fair payment practices in construction through legislation (the “Construction Act”), the use of public procurement (promoting prompt payment to Tier 3 and the use of Project Bank Accounts), and by working with the industry through voluntary measures (such as the Prompt Payment Code and the Construction Leadership Council’s Payment Charter).

The Government has legislated for new transparency measures in the public and private sectors. This will allow full public scrutiny of payment performance.

The Payment Charter includes a commitment of zero retentions by 2025. To support this work, the Government recently announced a review of the practice of cash retentions under construction contracts in England.

Tackling late payment is about creating a responsible payment culture where larger companies recognise the benefit of having a sustainable and robust supply chain, and smaller businesses feel able to challenge poor behaviour.

The Government believes that taken together these measures will lead to significant changes in the UK’s payment culture.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2016-01-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the number of spaces available for disabled people in music venues; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Edward Vaizey

We believe that everyone should have equal access to arts and culture – having a disability should not be a barrier to enjoying Britain’s awe-inspiring cultural treasures. That is why we are working with venues and organisations representing disabled people to identify barriers to access, while at the same time seeing how we can share examples of best practice and what more cultural venues need to do to be accessible to people with disabilities. We support the work of Attitude is Everything, which works with audiences, artists and the music industry to improve deaf and disabled people’s access to live events. I also recently held a roundtable meeting with Justin Tomlinson, Minister for Disabled People, to look at access to cultural venues and events for disabled people.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2016-02-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if the Government will apply for funding from the EU Solidarity Fund for relief payments for issues arising from recent flooding.

James Wharton

The Government will consider an application once the full costs are known. The European Union Solidarity Fund does not provide additional funding to local areas. It reimburses emergency costs that the Government would have incurred anyway. For this reason, the Government’s immediate priority remains dealing with the urgent needs of those affected, which is why we have provided just under £200 million to help those affected by the floods to support recovery and repair.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2016-02-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to improve access to specialist psychology support for people with muscle-wasting conditions.

Jane Ellison

With regards to the National Health Service in Scotland, as healthcare is a devolved issue, the Department cannot comment.

NHS England commissions specialised neurological services at a national level, including those with muscle-wasting conditions. The neurosciences service specification sets out what designated specialised providers must have in place to offer evidence-based, safe and effective care. Patients should have access to a multidisciplinary team (MDT) to assess, diagnose and provide support. The MDT will include neuromuscular consultants, neuromuscular physiotherapists, psychologists, specialist nurses, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists and other health professionals.

The specification further sets out that neuromuscular clinics need to identify those at risk of respiratory problems and refer for specialist respiratory assessment and monitoring.

The specification can be found at the following link:

www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/d04-neurosci-spec-neuro.pdf

A separate specification covers services for children.

www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/e09-paedi-neurology.pdf

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2016-02-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the provision of specialist respiratory care for people with muscle-wasting conditions; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison

With regards to the National Health Service in Scotland, as healthcare is a devolved issue, the Department cannot comment.

NHS England commissions specialised neurological services at a national level, including those with muscle-wasting conditions. The neurosciences service specification sets out what designated specialised providers must have in place to offer evidence-based, safe and effective care. Patients should have access to a multidisciplinary team (MDT) to assess, diagnose and provide support. The MDT will include neuromuscular consultants, neuromuscular physiotherapists, psychologists, specialist nurses, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists and other health professionals.

The specification further sets out that neuromuscular clinics need to identify those at risk of respiratory problems and refer for specialist respiratory assessment and monitoring.

The specification can be found at the following link:

www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/d04-neurosci-spec-neuro.pdf

A separate specification covers services for children.

www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/e09-paedi-neurology.pdf

“

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2016-02-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on new emissions tests for cars.

Andrew Jones

I have held regular discussions with my ministerial colleagues on the new European emissions tests for cars. The Government strongly supports the ‘Real Driving Emissions’ agreement, which is expected to reduce significantly real world oxides of nitrogen emissions from diesel cars.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2016-02-29.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 30 November 2015 to Question 17357, when in 2016 he plans to introduce the new reporting requirement to report on payment practices and performance.

Anna Soubry

The reporting requirement will come into force later this year. Further information on timings will be published in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2015-11-09.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether it is his policy to maintain the level of funding to the NHS from national insurance contributions (NICs) regardless of the overall amount raised by NICs; and if he will make a statement.

Greg Hands

By 2020-21, the Government will increase funding for the NHS by £10 billion a year in real terms compared to 2014-15 to support the transformation of services across the country. This investment is £2bn more than the NHS asked for, and will help deliver the Government’s objective in moving to a seven day NHS by 2020.

The Government does not commit to achieving a specific level of funding to the NHS from National Insurance contributions (NICs). Instead, a fixed proportion of each class of NICs receipts (from employees, the self-employed and employers) is allocated directly to the NHS; this adds up to about 20% of NICs receipts. The rest of NHS funding comes from general taxation.