Asked by: Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Marine Conservation Zones consultation published in June 2018, for what reason the consultation period was limited to six weeks; and when his Department plans to publish the results of that consultation.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
The consultation on the third tranche of Marine Conservation Zones ran for a period of six weeks and closed on 20th July. Six weeks was considered sufficient given that most of the sites consulted on had been in the public domain since 2011 and targeted stakeholder engagement had been carried out ahead of the consultation. We received over 48,500 responses during the consultation period.
We are carefully considering all of the responses received and the designations will be announced and in place by or before 7th June 2019. At the same time we will also publish a full Government response to the consultation, outlining the evidence received and explaining the decisions taken on each site.
Asked by: Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many properties are unoccupied in Dorset; and for how long on average a property has been left unoccupied in that county in the period for which such information has been collated.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
For the purposes of council tax base, we collect data on an annual basis on the total number of dwellings classed as empty. We also collect data on the number of dwellings classed as empty and being charged the Empty Homes Premium, and the number of dwellings classed as empty and have been for more than 6 months.
Local authority level data as at 2 October 2017 can be found at the following link https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/council-taxbase-2017-in-england.
The number of long-term vacant dwellings across England remains lower than when records began.
Asked by: Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Transport:
What steps his Department is taking to reduce congestion on the strategic road network.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government is investing £15 billion to maintain and improve England’s strategic road network and reduce congestion. Highways England are making good progress delivering the schemes set out in the first Road Investment Strategy. In their latest delivery plan update, published in July 2018, they confirm that 22 major schemes have been completed since 2015.
Asked by: Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much funding his Department planned to allocate to the Community Prisons for Women; how much savings have been accrued as a result of the cancellation of those prisons; to which programmes those savings have been allocated; and how much of those savings have been allocated to the rehabilitation and support of female offenders.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We had been developing a business case for the community prisons for women before moving to a community based approach and had not finalised a cost for these prisons. The evidence base on reoffending has continued to evolve and change. We continue to work with the model set out in Baroness Corston’s report, A review of women with particular vulnerabilities in the Criminal Justice System (2007). We believe that the steps we have outlined in the female offender strategy, including £5m of cross government funding over two years and the plan to work with local and national partners to pilot at least five residential women’s centres across England and Wales, is the right way to approach this but it remains only a first step on a journey.
The publication of the female offender strategy on 27 June is the start of a new and significant programme of work to deliver better outcomes for female offenders at all points of the justice system. It sets out our vision to see fewer women in custody, especially on short-term sentences, and a greater proportion of women managed in the community successfully. This will take some years to deliver and we will have the opportunity to revisit funding issues as we take work forward.
I remain committed to delivering these key reforms, which includes the female offender strategy, and ensuring there is sufficient funding for female offenders.
Asked by: Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
What plans he has to discuss the establishment of a youth full-time social action pilot programme with delivery organisations.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
I met both Steve Holliday, the Chair of the Full Time Social Action Review, and City Year, a provider of full time social action, in May.
I have no further plans to discuss a pilot programme with delivery organisations.
We are committed to supporting young people to take action on the issues they care about, and has invested in youth social action through programmes including the #iwill campaign and the National Citizen Service.
Asked by: Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
What plans he has to discuss the establishment of a youth full-time social action pilot programme with delivery organisations.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
I met both Steve Holliday, the Chair of the Full Time Social Action Review, and City Year, a provider of full time social action, in May.
I have no further plans to discuss a pilot programme with delivery organisations.
We are committed to supporting young people to take action on the issues they care about, and has invested in youth social action through programmes including the #iwill campaign and the National Citizen Service.
Asked by: Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Independent review of Full-Time Social Action, published in January 2018, what assessment his Department has made of potential merits of youth full-time social action in relation to the National Citizen Service.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
My Department is carefully considering the recommendations made by the Review of Full Time Social Action by Young People, including the recommendation relating to the National Citizen Service. The Government will issue its response in due course.
Asked by: Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans to respond to the recommendations made by the Independent Review of Full-Time Social Action.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
I refer the hon member to the answer to WPQ 127914 answered on 22nd February.
Asked by: Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans his Department has to ensure guidance and regulations on Relationships and Sex Education in secondary schools makes reference to marriage; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Children and Social Work Act (2017) places a duty on the Secretary of State for Education to make relationships education mandatory in all primary schools, and relationships and sex education mandatory in all secondary schools, in England. The Act also provides a power for the Secretary of State to make Personal, Social, Health and Economic education, or elements therein mandatory in all schools in England.
The Department has conducted the first stage of a thorough engagement process. As part of this process, the Department has received more than 20,000 responses to the call for evidence. The evidence collected will help determine the content of the regulations and statutory guidance. The Department will ensure the subjects are designed to safeguard and support pupils whilst also being deliverable for schools. The Departments expect the guidance to reflect issues relating to marriage and civil partnerships, such as the value of strong and stable relationships based on commitment.
The draft regulations and guidance will be subject to a full public consultation before the regulations are laid in Parliament for debate and vote.
Asked by: Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the number of reoffenders for each year since 2010.
Answered by Rory Stewart
Her Majesty’s Prisons and Probation Service (HMPPS), does not calculate separately the annual cost of prisoners who have reoffended. However, recent studies show that reoffending costs £15 billion to society and we are committed to rehabilitating offenders to reduce reoffending and create fewer victims.
We are clear that prisons must become places of discipline, hard work and self-improvement. Our reforms will help deliver a system that is focused on getting prisoners the education and training they need to live law-abiding lives when they are released.