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419005

	registered interest
	date	01/09/2015
	answering body	Wales Office
	answering dept id	28
	answering dept short name	Wales
	answering dept sort name	Wales
	hansard heading	Health Services: Wales
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what discussions he has had with Ministers in the Welsh Government on equality and diversity training in health and social care in Wales.
	tabling member constituency	Bath
	tabling member printed	Ben Howlett
	uin	901182
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2015 answer text <p>I, along with Ministerial colleagues, have regular discussions with Welsh Government Ministers on a range of issues, including equality and diversity within the health and social care sectors in Wales.</p><p> </p><p><br></p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Vale of Glamorgan answering member printed Alun Cairns question first answered 16/09/2015 12:22:29 answering member 4086 label Biography information for Alun Cairns
	tabling member	4445 label Biography information for Ben Howlett

381228

	registered interest
	date	15/06/2015
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Legal Aid Scheme: Mental Illness
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to improve access to legal aid for people with mental health issues; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Bath
	tabling member printed	Ben Howlett
	uin	2474
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/06/2015 answer text <p>The Government is aware of the importance of ensuring that vulnerable people, including those with mental health issues have access to Justice.</p><p> </p><p>Whilst making savings to spending on civil legal aid we have made sure funding is available in cases where legal help is most needed. When we enacted the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012, we specifically protected legal advice and legal representation for eligible persons involved in mental health and capacity proceedings under the Mental Health Act 1983 and the Mental Capacity Act 2005. In addition, certain damages claims brought against public authorities (those involving a significant breach of human rights or the abuse of a position of power) claims arising out of allegations of the abuse of a child or vulnerable adult, or allegations of sexual assault, continue to be funded.</p><p> </p><p>We are monitoring the impacts of legal aid reform and will conduct a post implementation review within 3-5 years of implementation of part 1 of LASPO.</p> answering member constituency North West Cambridgeshire answering member printed Mr Shailesh Vara question first answered 22/06/2015 16:00:59 answering member 1496 label Biography information for Shailesh Vara
	tabling member	4445 label Biography information for Ben Howlett

381240

	registered interest
	date	15/06/2015
	answering body	Home Office
	answering dept id	1
	answering dept short name	Home Office
	answering dept sort name	Home Office
	hansard heading	Vetting
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her policy is on introducing a single tier Disclosure and Barring Service enhanced disclosure certificate.
	tabling member constituency	Bath
	tabling member printed	Ben Howlett
	uin	2473
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/06/2015 answer text <p>Enhanced criminal record certificates are available for a range of posts and activities involving particular sensitivity or trust, including working closely with children or vulnerable adults. Applications are based on the relevant workforce, which ensures that any local police information relevant to that category can be considered for disclosure. There are no plans to move away from this position.</p> answering member constituency Staffordshire Moorlands answering member printed Karen Bradley question first answered 19/06/2015 13:12:09 answering member 4110 label Biography information for Dame Karen Bradley
	tabling member	4445 label Biography information for Ben Howlett

387084

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2015
	answering body	Home Office
	answering dept id	1
	answering dept short name	Home Office
	answering dept sort name	Home Office
	hansard heading	Immigration: Middle East
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the eligibility criteria are for entry to the UK for citizens of (a) Palestine and (b) Israel.
	tabling member constituency	Bath
	tabling member printed	Ben Howlett
	uin	5053
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2015 answer text <p>Non-EEA nationals seeking entry to the UK for any purpose must meet the requirements of the Immigration Rules. The Rules set out the criteria that applications for entry clearance, leave to enter or remain must meet to qualify for entry. Applicants must produce either a valid passport or travel document that satisfactorily establishes their identity and nationality or citizenship.</p><p>Nationals or citizens of Israel, who hold a full Israeli passport, do not require a visa to come to the UK as a visitor or for any other purpose, for less than six months. Holders of Palestinian travel documents require a visa to come to the UK for any purpose in the Immigration Rules.</p> answering member constituency Old Bexley and Sidcup answering member printed James Brokenshire question first answered 09/07/2015 15:11:16 answering member 1530 label Biography information for James Brokenshire
	tabling member	4445 label Biography information for Ben Howlett

381282

	registered interest
	date	10/06/2015
	answering body	HM Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	Regional Planning and Development: South West
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has plans for a West of England Powerhouse.
	tabling member constituency	Bath
	tabling member printed	Ben Howlett
	uin	900336
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2015 answer text <p>The deal with Greater Manchester emphasised this Government’s commitment to hand power from the centre to cities.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>In May 2015 the Chancellor said his “door is open to any other major city who wants to take this bold step” and take control of its own affairs and access the same mayoral offer.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Queen’s Speech introduced a Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill which will enable cities to adopt a radical new model of government.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Chelsea and Fulham answering member printed Greg Hands question first answered 16/06/2015 16:05:53 answering member 1526 label Biography information for Greg Hands
	tabling member	4445 label Biography information for Ben Howlett

386954

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2015
	answering body	HM Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	Pensions: Tax Allowances
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has for future policy on pension tax relief.
	tabling member constituency	Bath
	tabling member printed	Ben Howlett
	uin	5054
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/07/2015 answer text <p>The Summer Budget 2015 announced that the government is consulting on whether there is a case for reforming pensions tax relief to strengthen the incentive to save.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>To help control the cost of pensions tax relief in the short term, the Summer Budget also confirmed the manifesto commitment to introduce a taper to the Annual Allowance for those with incomes, including pension contributions, above £150,000.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Hertfordshire answering member printed Mr David Gauke question first answered 10/07/2015 12:18:22 answering member 1529 label Biography information for Mr David Gauke
	tabling member	4445 label Biography information for Ben Howlett

387131

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2015
	answering body	HM Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	Revenue and Customs: Telephone Services
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to reduce waiting times for calls to HM Revenue and Customs.
	tabling member constituency	Bath
	tabling member printed	Ben Howlett
	uin	5173
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/07/2015 answer text <p>HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) accepts that its performance was inconsistent during 2014-15 and has recently outlined actions taken to improve customer service. These include recruitment of additional staff and investment in new technology.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The department has allocated £45 million, supporting the recruitment of an additional 3,000 customer service staff to answer calls and deal with customer correspondence. HMRC is also temporarily moving around 2,000 additional people from other parts of HMRC into customer service roles to support the tax credits peak.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Hertfordshire answering member printed Mr David Gauke question first answered 10/07/2015 10:58:20 answering member 1529 label Biography information for Mr David Gauke
	tabling member	4445 label Biography information for Ben Howlett

381491

	registered interest
	date	16/06/2015
	answering body	Department of Health
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health
	answering dept sort name	Health
	hansard heading	Home Care Services
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals for changes to the Care Act 2014 to ensure that social carers spend sufficient time with each patient.
	tabling member constituency	Bath
	tabling member printed	Ben Howlett
	uin	2646
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/06/2015 answer text <p>Care workers are routinely tasked with caring for individuals with intimate care and support needs, for example helping those who are older or who have a disability to do everyday things like wash, dress and get out of bed. It is unrealistic to think that very short home care visits, for example, those lasting less than 15 minutes would be enough time to do this - it is not fair on those who need care and it is not fair on care workers. Through the Care Act, the Government has made it clear that commissioning services without considering the impact on people’s wellbeing is unacceptable.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>It is the Government’s position that it would be inappropriate to introduce new or amend existing legislation to address this issue, for example, by specifying a minimum time length for home care visits. Short care visits may be appropriate for specific, non-intimate tasks such as checking medication has been taken.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Commissioning for high quality care requires a more fundamental culture shift where the outcomes individuals want to achieve sits at the heart of every decision made by a local authority. This is best achieved through guidance and support.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Department has published statutory guidance to support the implementation of the Care Act that describes how local authorities must meet these new duties when commissioning. The Department has also worked with the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services and the Local Government Association to co-produce a set of standards to support local authorities to assess and improve their commissioning practices.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency North East Bedfordshire answering member printed Alistair Burt question first answered 24/06/2015 11:15:46 answering member 1201 label Biography information for Alistair Burt
	tabling member	4445 label Biography information for Ben Howlett

388280

	registered interest
	date	07/07/2015
	answering body	Department of Health
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health
	answering dept sort name	Health
	hansard heading	Sign Language: Finance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his policy is on future funding for supporting adult sign readers; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Bath
	tabling member printed	Ben Howlett
	uin	5859
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/07/2015 answer text <p>It is the responsibility of local providers and commissioners to make the reasonable adjustments required by the Equality Act 2010 to ensure that disabled people are not placed at a substantial disadvantage compared to non-disabled people.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Arrangements for the provision of sign language interpretation and translation services by National Health Service bodies and NHS service providers are a matter for local determination.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>In order to reduce unacceptable variation in the provision of accessible information and communication support to disabled people, including adult sign readers, NHS England published an accessible information standard, SCCI1605, on 3 July. The standard sets out that all organisations providing NHS or adult social care must take steps to ensure that people receive information that they can access and understand, and receive communication support if they need it. Organisations must comply in full with the standard by 31 July 2016.</p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency North East Bedfordshire answering member printed Alistair Burt question first answered 14/07/2015 13:24:00 answering member 1201 label Biography information for Alistair Burt
	tabling member	4445 label Biography information for Ben Howlett

349826

	registered interest
	date	10/06/2015
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Learning Disability: Employment
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to ensure people with adult learning difficulties (a) receive appropriate support when looking for a job and (b) are supported enough to retain that job once in work.
	tabling member constituency	Bath
	tabling member printed	Ben Howlett
	uin	1970
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2015 answer text <p /> <p>Through the Disability Employment Adviser (DEA) network across Jobcentre Plus, DWP provides a pan-disability, person centred approach, when supporting disabled people into employment. Advisers receive specific training on Autism and Learning Disabilities; enabling them to offer an appropriate and accessible service when supporting individuals with these conditions into work. The Work-Choice programme provides employment support for all pan-disability groups including individuals with learning disabilities, ensuring reasonable adjustment solutions are identified and put in place, at the earliest stage, ensuring participants are able to meet their full potential on the programme. To support the retention of people with learning disabilities, DWP provides help through the Access to Work scheme, which pays for the additional adjustments that disabled people may require to retain them in the workplace.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 16/06/2015 12:07:41 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	4445 label Biography information for Ben Howlett