Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the cost to the public purse is of money spent outside the UK in the construction of High Speed Two; and if he will place that information in the Library.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
£8,163,809 has been spent with 23 companies registered outside of the UK. This equates to 0.12% of HS2 Ltd's total spend. These figures show the spend from December 2014 to the end of September 2020.
HS2 Ltd ensures a fair procurement process which complies with UK procurement law, and has an excellent track record of supporting British businesses with over 2,000 businesses delivering work so far on HS2, of which 98% are UK-based, and 70% of which are SMEs.
Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of including in legislative proposals on online harms protections for people with autism from international extradition resulting from cyber incursions.
Answered by James Brokenshire
The Extradition Act 2003 is the legislative framework which contains the safeguards and protections available in UK courts to all persons requested for extradition to any overseas jurisdiction. A requested person will not be extradited if doing so would breach their human rights, if the request is politically motivated or if they would be at risk of facing the death penalty. The court can also bar a person's extradition if, according to a range of factors including their health, it would not be in the interests of justice for the extradition to take place and can decide that it would be more appropriate to try the case in the UK than in the requesting state.
Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)
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 made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing different guest restriction numbers at weddings in different covid-19 tiers; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Paul Scully
Wedding and civil partnership ceremonies with fifteen guests attending are allowed in Tiers 1, 2 and 3. Wedding receptions with fifteen guests can take place in Tiers 1 and 2 in COVID-19 Secure venues. Wedding receptions are not permitted in Tier 3.
Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what authority the 300 year old oak tree was felled at HS2 Plan 11; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The High Speed Rail (London - West Midlands) Act 2017 allows the nominated undertaker to carry-out a broad range of ancillary works within Act limits and provides the powers to undertake such felling works anywhere within those limits.
HS2 Ltd takes its environmental responsibilities seriously, and felling is only undertaken where necessary. The schedules of the 2017 Act provide further information, particularly Schedule 2 (works) and Schedule 30 (trees). All Schedules associated with the 2017 Act can be found here: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2017/7/contents/enacted
HS2 Ltd’s aim is to protect the environment wherever possible, and to do more than just mitigate in the areas where it is constructing the railway. Along the route HS2 will leave behind richer, more diverse and better connected wildlife habitats. Up to 7 million trees will eventually be planted along Phase One, with many new recreational areas for communities to enjoy. Of the 43 ancient woodlands affected by HS2’s route between London and Crewe, 80% of the total area will remain intact and not impacted.
Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of implementing a hyperloop transport system through the High Speed Two project.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Hyperloop is at an early stage of development and significant technological challenges have to be overcome before an operational system can be constructed and carry passengers.
In 2017 the Department for Transport’s Science Advisory Council (SAC) published a position statement on Hyperloop which noted that “because of the scale of the technical challenges involved, an operational Hyperloop system is likely to be at least a couple of decades away.” Officials in the Department continue to monitor Hyperloop research very closely. They do not believe that there have been any developments in the last three years that might cast doubt on the SAC’s 2017 assessment.
The Department for Transport conducted a detailed investigation last year into the feasibility of constructing a high-speed Maglev link in the UK. Its conclusion was that whilst Maglev is a promising technology, there are still several obstacles which, at present, put it at a disadvantage compared to high speed rail.
Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of the (a) maglev and (b) hyperloop transport systems; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Hyperloop is at an early stage of development and significant technological challenges have to be overcome before an operational system can be constructed and carry passengers.
In 2017 the Department for Transport’s Science Advisory Council (SAC) published a position statement on Hyperloop which noted that “because of the scale of the technical challenges involved, an operational Hyperloop system is likely to be at least a couple of decades away.” Officials in the Department continue to monitor Hyperloop research very closely. They do not believe that there have been any developments in the last three years that might cast doubt on the SAC’s 2017 assessment.
The Department for Transport conducted a detailed investigation last year into the feasibility of constructing a high-speed Maglev link in the UK. Its conclusion was that whilst Maglev is a promising technology, there are still several obstacles which, at present, put it at a disadvantage compared to high speed rail.
Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the value is of the (a) rent-free working space and (b) commercial and technical support being given by the Government through the High Speed Two project to (i) Digital Rail, (ii) Hypervine, (iii) Rail Diary, (iv) Grid Smarter Cities and (v) Open Space.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The HS2 accelerator is a programme to support innovation in UK-registered Small Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) working on HS2. HS2 Ltd does this through its lead innovation partner, the Connected Places Catapult (CPC), an independent research organisation set up as a not-for-profit entity, part funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
SMEs are selected for the HS2 Accelerator programme after applying to an open competition call that sets out some of the specific innovation challenges experienced by HS2. It is advertised nationally through multiple channels in line with industry standards for accelerator programmes.
Selected organisations participate in the Accelerator on a voluntary basis and receive no direct financial benefit. Desk space and meeting rooms are made available by CPC in Birmingham when needed for training, business development advice and meetings with HS2 Ltd. It is not possible to calculate the monetary value associated with the future ad-hoc use of this resource. This resource is not in lieu of any existing arrangements the SMEs may have in place. The value of HS2 Ltd’s contract with CPC is £390k, and we are working with 10 UK SME companies.
Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the (a) terms of reference, (b) tendering process and (c) budget is for each of the four technical expert panels being established by HS2.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
a) HS2 Ltd already use Independent Technical Expert Panels (ITEP) to review specific assets. This is consistent with the recommendation made by the HS2 Ltd Chairman in his Stocktake report and the Oakervee Review. The panels work to stress-test and challenge selected assets or areas.
b) HS2 Ltd is currently undertaking a market engagement exercise for covering the requirement to establish, manage and provide ITEPs to peer review its Main Works Civils Contracts (MWCC) scheme, Stations and Phase 2 detailed designs and construction methodology (PIN reference 2020/S 217-533979). The tendering process cannot be confirmed until this market engagement exercise is completed.
c) The total budget for the ITEPs is £5.2 million for the full duration of the contract, including all applicable extension options (an initial duration of 2 years, with options to extend for a further 5 years). The individual panel budgets are commercially sensitive as this information may impact the procurement following the market engagement.
Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to GPs requiring patients to take blood pressure readings at home and send them to the surgery, what support is available to people with the cost of purchasing a blood pressure monitor; and how a patient can ensure that the monitor is calibrated to NHS standards at no extra cost.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The third phase of the National Health Service’s response to COVID-19, effective from the 1 August, focused on accelerating the return to near-normal levels of non-COVID-19 health services, which included the ask to accelerate preventative programmes and specifically the better targeting of long-term condition prevention and management programmes. NHS England’s letter regarding the third phase is available at the following link:
Hypertension monitoring and management is a priority for the NHS and we are developing safe systems to manage this making use of digital technology where appropriate. It is acknowledged that home blood pressure (BP) monitoring is not a preferred or possible option for all patients and there is no requirement on patients to pursue this option as primary care are continuing to offer this service where appropriate at practices. When a validated BP monitor is purchased it is calibrated to the required standard.
Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what compensation is available to university students who have their online tuition cancelled.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
This is a difficult and uncertain time for students, but we are working with the higher education (HE) sector to make sure that all reasonable efforts are being made to enable students to continue their studies. We have seen some fantastic and innovative examples of high-quality online learning being delivered across the sector and are aware of a number of universities that have increased their online teaching in response to local COVID-19 outbreaks. This is in line with government guidance, which sets out 4 tiers of restrictions for education settings, and SAGE advice.
However, the majority of universities are now open for the autumn term, using a blended learning approach which combines online teaching and in-person tuition in ways that they consider appropriate to minimise risk.
Whether or not an individual student is entitled to a refund of tuition fees will depend on the specific contractual arrangements between the HE provider and student.
If students have concerns, they should first raise their concerns with their university. If their concerns remain unresolved, students at HE providers in England or Wales can ask the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education to consider their complaint.
Universities are autonomous and responsible for setting their own fees within the fee caps set by the government. In deciding to keep charging full fees, universities will of course want to ensure that they can continue to deliver courses that are fit for purpose and that help students progress their qualifications.
The government has been clear that it expects universities to continue delivering a high-quality academic experience and help students to achieve qualifications that they and employers value.