Tag: Mike Kane

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2015-12-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the potential role for the private sector in increasing birth registration in fagile contexts.

Mr Desmond Swayne

Accurately recording births, deaths, adoptions, marriages and divorces will be critical in achieving the newly agreed Global Goals. In fragile contexts, registration is essential to enable refugees to obtain humanitarian services and protection under international law.

Although globally, the births of nearly 230 million children under age five have never been recorded and almost two thirds of deaths are not counted at all, some progress is being made, largely in Latin America and Asia. The increasing use of technology and the private sector have played important enabling roles in building this momentum and will continue to be crucial to further progress.

DFID supports statistical capacity building and implementation of national statistical plans in a number of countries through global programmes such as the Statistics for Results Facility Catalytic Fund (SRF-CF), implemented in eight countries. In Nigeria, for example, SRF-CF supported eight outreach birth/death registration centres. DFID also provides bilateral support to countries’ national statistical systems.

At a policy level, DFID supports the Commission for Information and Accountability (COIA) where CRVS is one of ten priority areas. DFID also provides support to the UNHCR, the mandated UN agency to advocate for the protection and promotion of the rights of refugees, which plays a crucial role in assisting refugees in with documentation. To date, DFID has allocated over £44 million to UNHCR’s operations in Jordan and in Lebanon, of which a proportion will go to funding the registration and issuing of birth certificates for refugees.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2016-01-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the UK Embassy in Israel has taken to monitor attacks on Christian places of worship.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

Our Embassy in Tel Aviv is in regular contact with representatives of churches on a range of issues, including to discuss concern about attacks on places of worship. The last attack occurred on 17 January 2016 where the Dormition Abbey compound of the Orthodox Church in the Old City of Jerusalem was vandalised with anti-Christian slogans. The ‘Tag Meir’ organisation has listed 44 cases of vandalism and arson on Christian and Muslim places of worship in Israel and the West Bank since December 2009.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2016-04-08.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Government plans to publish a draft agenda for the Anti-Corruption Summit to be held in May 2016.

Matthew Hancock

Information about the London Anti-Corruption Summit can be found on the summit web pages of the GOV.UK website. Further details about the summit will be announced in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2016-05-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to include producers of aviation fuel within the ambit of the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation.

Andrew Jones

The Department for Transport are assessing the benefits of making sustainable aviation biofuel eligible for certificates under the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO). We aim to publish a consultation on legislative amendments to the RTFO later this year including proposals for aviation biofuels.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2015-12-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will make it his policy to ensure that 15 per cent of the three million apprenticeships his Department plans to deliver over the next five years are taken up by disabled people.

Nick Boles

We are committed to reaching 3 million new apprenticeship starts by 2020. Thousands of disabled people have benefitted from apprenticeships. In the 2014/15 academic year 44,090 of those starting an apprenticeship declared a disability or learning difficulty (LDD). This is 8.8% of the total starts.

Apprenticeships are jobs with training and availability is dependent upon employers offering opportunities. However, we believe that there is more that can be done to ensure that people from a diverse range of backgrounds are in the best possible place to apply for and secure an apprenticeship. Employers must fulfil their duties as set out in the Equality Act 2010 for apprentices as they would for other employees.

An Apprenticeships Equality and Diversity Advisory group helps government understand and address any apprenticeship equality and diversity issues in order to reduce barriers and make apprenticeships as inclusive as possible.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2016-02-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for International Development on the Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, 12 January 2016, Official Report, column 248WH, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the Global Fund is addressing concentrated epidemics among key populations in middle income countries.

Mr Nick Hurd

The UK is a key supporter of the Global Fund and pledged up to £1 billion between 2014 and 2016, subject to a 10% donor share cap. Approximately 50% of Global Fund resources are directed to Middle Income Countries (MICs) and the UK has asked the Global Fund to focus more heavily on marginalised groups in MICs where they do invest.

The UK is working with the Global Fund and other partners to encourage MICs to develop their own self-financed programmes to combat concentrated epidemics, ensuring that investments are effectively reaching key populations and holding national governments to account so that vulnerable groups are not left behind.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2016-04-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether NHS England has placed a requirement on Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust to pay off its deficit.

Alistair Burt

We are advised that NHS England has placed no such requirements. These are matters for the Manchester Mental Health and Social Care NHS Trust and its commissioners.

We expect all National Health Service trusts to use their resources wisely and within their statutory responsibilities, while delivering high quality, sustainable services to patients. It is for the local NHS to determine the provision of local health services.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2016-05-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether healthcare professionals in Greater Manchester expressed support for the introduction of charging for (a) primary care and (b) emergency care in response to his Department’s consultation, Making a fair contribution: consultation on the extension of charging overseas visitors and migrants using the NHS in England.

Alistair Burt

The Government is currently analysing responses to this consultation and will publish its response in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2015-12-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of whether local provision through clinical commissioning groups and local authorities is ensuring that high-quality, personalised services are being delivered for young people with dementia and their carers.

Jane Ellison

The Government is clear that all types of dementia remain a priority and will implement the Prime Minister’s Challenge on Dementia 2020 in full to make sure that dementia care, support, awareness and research are transformed by 2020. Under the Prime Minister’s Challenge on Dementia 2020, we want to see:

– Every person diagnosed with dementia having meaningful care following their diagnosis, which supports them and those around them, with meaningful care being in accordance with published National Institute for Health and Care Excellence Quality Standards.

– Information on what post-diagnosis services are available locally and how these can be accessed, through for example an annual ‘information prescription’.

– Access to relevant advice and support to help and advice on what happens after a diagnosis and the support available through the journey.

– Carers of people with dementia being made aware of and offered the opportunity for respite, education, training, emotional and psychological support so that they feel able to cope with their caring responsibilities and to have a life alongside caring.

Under the 2020 Challenge, we wish to encourage greater personalisation in the provision of post-diagnosis services – this means building support around the individual with dementia, their carer and their family.

It is for clinical commissioning groups and local authorities, working together, to ensure that high quality, personalised services are delivered for people with dementia including younger people and their carers.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2016-02-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what procedures schools are required to follow in order to withdraw from an academy trust.

Edward Timpson

Where there are concerns about the performance of an academy the Regional Schools Commissioner may decide that the support of a new academy trust is needed to bring about the necessary improvements. In these cases the Regional Schools Commissioner may be able to use the termination powers set out in the academy’s funding agreement to require the academy to move to a new trust without the agreement of the academy or the existing trust. The Education and Adoption Bill will give Regional Schools Commissioners stronger more consistent powers to do this with failing and coasting academies.

Where the academy is performing well this is a matter for discussion and agreement between the academy, the trust and the relevant Regional Schools Commissioner.