Asked by: Harry Harpham (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the effect on claimants in Scotland of changes to working and child tax credits.
Answered by David Mundell
I meet with the Chancellor regularly to discuss a wide range of issues. Our changes to working and child tax credits will support our welfare reforms by ensuring that work always pays. Taxpayers should not be asked to subsidise, through the tax credit system, businesses which pay the lowest wages. Instead, we will support people in work through lower taxes and higher wages.
Asked by: Harry Harpham (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the timetable is for delivery of the Collaborative Tuberculosis strategy for England.
Answered by Jane Ellison
A draft implementation timetable was developed at the time of the launch of “The Collaborative Tuberculosis (TB) Strategy for England 2015-2020” on January 2015. As part of the strategy implementation process, work is currently underway with relevant stakeholders to review and finalise an implementation plan and timetable to deliver the Collaborative TB Strategy for England 2015-2020 in autumn 2015.
Asked by: Harry Harpham (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Leader of the House:
To ask the Leader of the House, what assessment he has made of the proposals for the restoration and renewal of the Palace of Westminster.
Answered by Chris Grayling
We intend to establish a Joint Committee of Parliament on the Restoration and Renewal of the Palace of Westminster. I expect this to be established before the summer recess. The Committee will be co-chaired by the Leaders of both Houses and will consider the Independent Options Appraisal Report, which was published on 18 June 2015, and related evidence and to make recommendations to both Houses on a way forward, taking account of costs, benefits, risks and potential timescales.
Asked by: Harry Harpham (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with the English Premier League on promoting grass roots sport.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
The Minister for Sport and Tourism has already had a number of discussions with the Premier League about how best to support the game. Further meetings are planned in the weeks and months ahead, but we are agreed that football's grassroots need greater investment and we will work in partnership to ensure that this happens.
Asked by: Harry Harpham (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 4 June 2015 to Question 603, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the UK supply chain benefits from investment in the offshore wind industry.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is working together with the Offshore Wind Industry to build a competitive and innovative UK supply chain that delivers and sustains jobs, exports and economic benefit for the UK.
Officials are working with the Developers, who were successful in the first Contract for Difference (CFD) allocation round, on the implementation of their Supply Chain Plan and to boost UK content.
Asked by: Harry Harpham (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions has he had with the Burmese government on (a) the Rohingya community in Rakhine state and (b) democracy and human rights in that country.
Answered by Lord Swire
We have consistently raised our concern at the situation of the Rohingya community in all recent Ministerial contacts with the Burmese government. Most recently, I called the Burmese Ambassador in to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 18 May to express our concern at the migrant crisis in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea, and press Burma to take urgent steps to deal with the humanitarian implications of the crisis, as well as the underlying causes in Rakhine. It is vital that Burma addresses the longer-term issues which lie at the root of the problem - namely the desperate conditions in which Rohingya communities are living in Rakhine State.
We recognise the significant steps towards democratic reform that the government of Burma has taken over the past two years. At the same time, we are clear that much more needs to be done, and that progress in some areas of human rights has declined. The November parliamentary elections will be a critically important test of the government’s commitment to see the reforms through to their conclusion. It is vital for Burma’s future development that these are inclusive and credible. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) made this point to President Thein Sein at the Group of Twenty (G20) summit in Brisbane in November.
Asked by: Harry Harpham (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of a link between access to GPs and attendances at accident and emergency departments.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The Urgent and Emergency Care Review identified a number of factors that impact on accident and emergency (A&E) attendances which can include local access to general practitioners (GPs).
We are expanding access to GPs in the evenings and at the weekend. Through the Prime Minister’s Challenge Fund, 18 million people will benefit from improved access, including at evenings and weekends by March 2016.
According to the latest GP Patient Survey results, published on 2 July 2015, 85.2% of patients were able to get an appointment with a GP or nurse at their surgery. 91.8% of those were able to get an appointment convenient to them. Of the 10.9% who reported that they could not get an appointment and the 8.2% who could not get an appointment that was convenient, 9.9% went to A&E or a walk-in centre.
Asked by: Harry Harpham (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 4 June 2015 to Question 603, what estimate she has made of the likely relative benefit for supply chains in (a) the UK and (b) other countries of investment in off-shore wind.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is working together with the Offshore Wind Industry to build a competitive and innovative UK supply chain that delivers and sustains jobs, exports and economic benefit for the UK.
Currently the offshore wind sector employs around 8,000 people directly, with a similar number of indirect jobs in the wider supply chain. With an investment opportunity of between £16bn - £21bn in the UK by 2020 plus export opportunities. Offshore wind has the potential to support tens of thousands of jobs and contribute billions to our economy.
The Department has not estimated the likely relative benefits for the supply chain in other countries of investment in off-shore wind.
Asked by: Harry Harpham (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 1 June 2015 to Question 601, where components of the Rampion wind farm will be manufactured; and which aspects of the supply chain will be UK manufactured.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department does not hold a list detailing where components of the Rampion wind farm will be manufactured or which aspects of the supply chain will be UK manufactured.
However, recent announcements by EON have stated that: Carillion has been awarded a contract to design, supply and install 160km of 150kV cable and associated jointing accessories; Babcock International has won a contract to design, engineer and construct the 2500-tonne offshore substation platform topside and jacket; and the operations and maintenance building will be located in the port of Newhaven.
As mentioned in my previous answer, we are working closely with EON to ensure that UK supply chain companies have the opportunity to compete for contracts that have yet to be awarded.
Asked by: Harry Harpham (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 1 June 2015 to Question 596, how many UK supply chain (a) jobs and (b) apprenticeships were created by each type of renewable energy for each year since 2010.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Figures published by BIS in The Size and Performance of the UK Low Carbon Economy (March 2015)1 report show that in 2013 the renewable energy sector (including both renewable heat and renewable electricity) supported around 168,400 jobs in total.
Table 1 details the number of jobs supported by each type of renewable energy, both directly and within the supply chain each year for 2010-2013. The equivalent information is not available for 2014 or 2015 or for the number of apprenticeships that have been created.
Table 1: Number of jobs supported by the renewable energy sector by energy type, in the UK
2010 | 2011 | |||||
Direct | Supply chain/ Indirect | Total | Direct | Supply chain/ Indirect | Total | |
Offshore wind | 6,300 | 4,600 | 10,900 | 6,700 | 4,900 | 11,600 |
Solar PV | 11,500 | 8,000 | 19,500 | 17,000 | 11,800 | 28,800 |
Hydroelectric energy | 3,900 | 2,900 | 6,800 | 4,200 | 3,100 | 7,300 |
Onshore wind | 8,200 | 6,000 | 14,300 | 10,300 | 7,500 | 17,800 |
Biomass and bioenergy1 | 16,600 | 12,200 | 28,800 | 16,900 | 12,400 | 29,400 |
Marine | 1,700 | 1,300 | 3,000 | 1,800 | 1,300 | 3,100 |
Geothermal electricity | 400 | 300 | 700 | 400 | 300 | 700 |
Total renewable electricity | 48,700 | 35,200 | 83,900 | 57,300 | 41,300 | 98,600 |
Total renewable heat | 31,400 | 22,100 | 53,500 | 32,200 | 22,600 | 54,900 |
Total renewable energy | 80,100 | 57,300 | 137,400 | 89,600 | 64,000 | 153,500
|
2012 | 2013 | |||||
Direct | Supply chain/ Indirect | Total | Direct | Supply chain/ Indirect | Total | |
Offshore wind | 7,200 | 5,300 | 12,400 | 7,900 | 5,800 | 13,700 |
Solar PV | 21,000 | 14,600 | 35,600 | 20,300 | 14,100 | 34,400 |
Hydroelectric energy | 4,100 | 3,000 | 7,100 | 4,300 | 3,100 | 7,400 |
Onshore wind | 10,600 | 7,800 | 18,400 | 11,000 | 8,000 | 19,000 |
Biomass and bioenergy [1] | 17,400 | 12,800 | 30,200 | 18,300 | 13,400 | 31,700 |
Marine | 1,800 | 1,300 | 3,000 | 1,800 | 1,300 | 3,100 |
Geothermal electricity | 500 | 300 | 800 | 500 | 400 | 900 |
Total renewable electricity | 62,600 | 45,000 | 107,600 | 64,100 | 46,200 | 110,300 |
Total renewable heat | 33,200 | 23,300 | 56,500 | 34,100 | 24,000 | 58,100 |
Total renewable energy | 95,700 | 68,300 | 164,100 | 98,200 | 70,100 | 168,400 |
[1] Biomass and bioenergy include the following sectors: energy generation from waste and biomass, biomass equipment, alternative fuels. Alternative fuels category includes jobs supported by both renewable and non-renewable energy sectors.