Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member printed question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

677413

registered interest
date	23/01/2017
answering body	Cabinet Office
answering dept id	53
answering dept short name	Cabinet Office
answering dept sort name	Cabinet Office
hansard heading	History: Publications
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Young of Cookham on 23 January (HL4523), whether they intend to commission any new projects to carry forward the Official History programme.
tabling member printed	Lord Lexden
uin	HL4879
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>As the Noble Friend knows from my answer to his written question, there are a number of Official Histories currently being produced. The Government will decide on new history projects when the current programme has been completed.</p> answering member printed Lord Young of Cookham question first answered 26/01/2017 14:16:37 answering member 57 label Biography information for Lord Young of Cookham
tabling member	4202 label Biography information for Lord Lexden

675740

registered interest
date	19/01/2017
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Severn River Crossing: Tolls
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government why they have reduced the tolls on the Severn Bridge without making a similar beneficial economic signal to the competing rail line and services.
tabling member printed	Lord Berkeley
uin	HL4815
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The Government has a longstanding policy that drivers using major river crossings should pay for their provision and upkeep. The proposed reduction in the toll on the Severn Crossings simply reflects that once the consortium that constructed the Second Severn Crossing have recouped their investment under the Concession, the subsequent return to public ownership will enable the Government to reduce the charges, and users will therefore benefit from lower prices. The Government is currently investing a record £40 billion in railways, which needs funding through a combination of taxpayer and farepayers contributions.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 26/01/2017 12:01:19 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	3526 label Biography information for Lord Berkeley

675741

registered interest
date	19/01/2017
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Severn River Crossing
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the full capital cost of the Severn Bridges and approaches together with interest charges have now been recovered and, if not, what is the outstanding debt and how much longer it will take for this to be repaid with the lower tolls announced on 13 January 2017.
tabling member printed	Lord Berkeley
uin	HL4816
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The consultation that the Government launched on 13<sup>th</sup> January 2017 sets out that the revenue to be recouped under the current concession will be received by late 2017 or early 2018.</p><p> </p><p>Once the Crossings are back in public ownership, there are costs that will need to be recouped from the proposed lower charges. These include those previously incurred outside of the concession, and future costs such as:</p><p> </p><ul><li>periodic resurfacing,</li><li>ongoing operating and maintenance costs of the roads and bridge structures,</li><li>and potential costs of introducing free flow charging.</li></ul><p> </p><p>The consultation commits to setting future charges at levels which do no more than cover costs, and to keep the amount charged under review.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 26/01/2017 12:01:51 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	3526 label Biography information for Lord Berkeley

672267

registered interest
date	12/01/2017
answering body	Department of Health
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health
answering dept sort name	Health
hansard heading	Nurses: Training
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many nursing students were admitted to degree courses starting in (1) Autumn 2016, and (2) Autumn 2017; and what assessment they have made of the impact of the discontinuance of the NHS bursary scheme for nurses on those numbers.
tabling member printed	Lord Clark of Windermere
uin	HL4605
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>For autumn 2015 admissions, the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) end of cycle data for B7 Nursing in England shows 21,450 students accepted onto B7 Nursing courses in England.</p><p> </p><p>For autumn 2016 admissions, the UCAS end of cycle data for B7 Nursing in England shows 22,630 acceptances.</p><p> </p><p>The information for autumn 2017 admissions is not yet available.</p> answering member printed Lord O'Shaughnessy question first answered 26/01/2017 14:25:13 answering member 4545 label Biography information for Lord O'Shaughnessy
tabling member	525 label Biography information for Lord Clark of Windermere

672268

registered interest
date	12/01/2017
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	thebigword
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have a target figure for cost savings for the provision of court interpreters under the contract with <i>thebigword</i>; and if so, what is it, and against what baseline it is measured.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL4606
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The Ministry is committed to ensuring the justice system is supported by a range of quality language services that meet the needs of all those that require them.</p><p> </p><p>All our new language service contracts contain robust performance and charging provisions which are designed to ensure the value for money and affordability of the services provided by the department's suppliers. However, we have not felt it appropriate to set a target figure for cost savings for the provision of court interpreters, which is a demand-led service, given the importance we attach to the provision of such support to those who most need it.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:22:30 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

672269

registered interest
date	12/01/2017
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	thebigword
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the contract with <i>thebigword</i> for court interpreters specifies any particular level or type of qualification which individual interpreters are expected to have.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL4607
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The Ministry is committed to ensuring the justice system is supported by a range of high quality language services that meet the needs of all those that require them.</p><p> </p><p>Bookings are classified depending on their complexity level, namely: ‘standard’, ‘complex’ and ‘complex written’. These complexity levels were determined by each Commissioning Body.</p><p> </p><p>I can confirm that the contract sets out the minimum level of qualification and experience a language professional is required to have in order to work on each complexity level of booking. Details of these qualifications can be found at: <a href="https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/975cb99e-fec6-430f-8f31-fd532a907137" target="_blank">https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/975cb99e-fec6-430f-8f31-fd532a907137</a></p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:23:54 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

672270

registered interest
date	12/01/2017
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Courts: Interpreters
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the cost, in the last quarter of 2016, of cancellations and adjournments of court hearings because no interpreter arrived, or because the interpreter arrived too late, or was an interpreter in the wrong language, or proved to be an inadequate interpreter; and how this cost compares with each quarter of the previous year.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL4608
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The information requested is not held centrally.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:24:47 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

672271

registered interest
date	12/01/2017
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Courts: Interpreters
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the future supply chain of qualified court interpreters, in the light of the payment levels and cancellation policy established by the Ministry of Justice.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL4609
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The Ministry is keen to maintain the quality and capacity of the future supply chain of qualified court interpreters, to make sure that the justice system continues to be supported by a range of high quality language services that meet the needs of all those that require them.</p><p> </p><p>The Ministry has awarded a contract to 'The Language Shop' (part of the London Borough of Newham) to provide us with independent quality assurance of the translation and interpretation services. This contract also includes the requirement for The Language Shop to develop and administer a Language Professional Trainee Scheme with the primary objective of increasing the resource available to the other language service suppliers in pursuit of fulfilling Commissioning Body bookings.</p><p> </p><p>The Trainee Scheme will provide one or more clear, structured and flexible pathways for part qualified language professionals to become qualified within specified timescales. The Language Shop, and the other language service suppliers, are also required to jointly promote and encourage participation in the Scheme at the point of registration and through industry and academic networks and events.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:26:00 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

672272

registered interest
date	12/01/2017
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Courts: Interpreters
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government how the provision of court interpreters is being independently monitored.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL4610
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The new language service contracts began on 31 October 2016 and are subject to robust governance arrangements.</p><p>These include monthly meetings with suppliers and stakeholders to monitor and discuss, in detail, the quality of the services being provided and performance against contractual performance indicators. The contracts also provide for the Ministry to audit the suppliers to verify the accuracy of contractual payments, management information, and compliance with contractual obligations.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, the Ministry has awarded a contract to 'The Language Shop' (part of the London Borough of Newham) to provide independent quality assurance of the services provided under the other contracts, including those awarded to the thebigword Ltd. The Language Shop undertakes this assurance in a number of ways, including managing the Ministry’s register of interpreters, conducting an annual audit of supplier processes for introducing new linguists, and a programme of 'spot checks' of interpreters undertaking assignments.</p><p> </p><p>The Language Shop also has a responsibility to assure the correct levels of qualifications, skills, security clearance and experience are held by each linguist through their ongoing assessment programme and in response to complaints or specific concerns during the contract period.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:26:43 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

672273

registered interest
date	12/01/2017
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	thebigword
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government which company, or companies, are being sub-contracted by <i>thebigword</i> to provide court interpreting services; and whether those companies are subject to quality assurance.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL4611
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>To ensure a high and consistent level of fulfilment across all geographical areas and in rare languages, thebigword have partnered with a number of subcontractors, namely: Global Language Services Limited, Cintra Translations Limited, Debonair Languages Ltd, Supreme Linguistic Services Ltd, Mango Spice Language Solutions, J-anne Interpreting and Translation Service Limited, Global Translation Services and Language River.</p><p> </p><p>Thebigword must ensure that its subcontracts contain obligations no less onerous on the sub-contractor than those imposed on them by the Ministry, including those relating to quality and performance standards. Thebigword are also responsible for carrying out audits to ensure subcontractor adherence to the contract service specification.</p><p> </p><p>All language professionals provided by thebigword, whether directly or via subcontractor, will be subject to ongoing quality assurance provided by The Language Shop. This includes a programme of 'spot checks' of interpreters undertaking assignments.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:27:17 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins