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173576

registered interest
date	14/01/2015
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	English Language: Education
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to increase the attention paid to vocabulary building within literacy syllabuses in the national curriculum from pre-school onwards.
tabling member printed	Lord Storey
uin	HL4136
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2015 answer text <p>The Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) sets out that literacy development during the early years involves encouraging children to link sounds and letters and to begin to read and write. Both the reading and writing literacy goals in the Statutory Framework set out the skills that most children should meet by the end of the foundation stage. Children must also be given access to a wide range of reading materials to ignite their interest.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The importance of vocabulary development is emphasised and integrated throughout the National Curriculum framework. This covers both general vocabulary development and the subject-specific language that pupils need to be able to use to progress in, for example, mathematics and science. Both the reading and writing domains of the English programmes of study emphasise the importance of building pupils’ vocabulary, so they understand and can use a wide range of words.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The approach to developing vocabulary is first through securing word reading and comprehension and secondly through pupils developing an understanding of how words and meaning can be created using prefixes and suffixes. Morphology and etymology are emphasised at key stage 2 to further develop pupils’ capacity for understanding and developing vocabulary. This is brought together in the appendix to the English programmes of study covering vocabulary, grammar and punctuation, which also sets out the terminology that pupils should be taught to use to discuss their writing.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Nash question first answered 20/01/2015 16:49:49 answering member 4270 label Biography information for Lord Nash
tabling member	4238 label Biography information for Lord Storey

173577

registered interest
date	14/01/2015
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Pupils: Disadvantaged
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans the Department for Education have to increase funding for summer schools.
tabling member printed	Lord Storey
uin	HL4137
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2015 answer text <p>Since 2012, the Department for Education has provided funding to enable secondary schools to run a summer school for their new pupils who are classed as disadvantaged. These events provide an excellent opportunity for secondary schools to help disadvantaged pupils understand what and how they will be studying in key stage 3, and also to help those who are behind in key areas such as literacy and numeracy to catch up with their peers.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The 2015 summer schools programme opened for registrations on Monday 19 January 2015. As in previous years, schools will receive £250 (if running a one-week summer school) or £500 (if running a two-week summer school) for every eligible pupil who confirms they want to attend the summer school.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Any decision on the future of the summer schools programme would be made as part of the next Spending Review.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Nash question first answered 20/01/2015 14:16:53 answering member 4270 label Biography information for Lord Nash
tabling member	4238 label Biography information for Lord Storey

173578

registered interest
date	14/01/2015
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	ICT: Education
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to encourage the teaching of computer coding in schools.
tabling member printed	Lord Storey
uin	HL4138
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2015 answer text <p>The new national curriculum in computing is now being taught in maintained schools. It is a compulsory subject in all key stages and the programmes of study include coding from key stage 1. Primary school pupils will be taught about algorithms and how to design and write programs, while at secondary school pupils will be taught to use at least two programming languages. The Government has made £3.5 million available to provide training and support to existing teachers to ensure they are fully prepared to teach computing and have the skills to engage and enthuse their pupils.</p> answering member printed Lord Nash question first answered 20/01/2015 16:43:26 answering member 4270 label Biography information for Lord Nash
tabling member	4238 label Biography information for Lord Storey

173582

registered interest
date	14/01/2015
answering body	Cabinet Office
answering dept id	53
answering dept short name	Cabinet Office
answering dept sort name	Cabinet Office
hansard heading	Iraq Committee of Inquiry
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will provide a detailed breakdown of the costs of the Chilcot Inquiry to date.
tabling member printed	Lord Truscott
uin	HL4142
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/01/2015 answer text <p>I refer the noble Lord to the answer I gave to Lord West of Spithead on 3 November 2014, Official Report, Column 1425. A detailed breakdown of these costs is available on the Inquiry’s website.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Wallace of Saltaire question first answered 19/01/2015 16:56:38 answering member 1816 label Biography information for Lord Wallace of Saltaire
tabling member	3682 label Biography information for Lord Truscott

173590

registered interest
date	14/01/2015
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	East Coast Main Line
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the infrastructure of the East Coast Main Line has sufficient capacity to enable the Virgin/Stagecoach consortium to deliver both faster and more frequent trains under the InterCity East Coast franchise.
tabling member printed	Lord Bradshaw
uin	HL4150
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2015 answer text <p>The enhanced infrastructure, provided by Government’s Rail Investment Strategy for Control Period 5 (2014-2019) and as part of the Intercity Express Programme (IEP), and new trains, provided by IEP, will allow Virgin Trains East Coast to deliver improvements to the East Coast train service. In addition to this any decision on the allocation of further capacity made available by these enhancements will be taken by the Office of Rail Regulation.</p> answering member printed Baroness Kramer question first answered 20/01/2015 11:58:34 answering member 1557 label Biography information for Baroness Kramer
tabling member	2483 label Biography information for Lord Bradshaw

173592

registered interest
date	14/01/2015
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	East Coast Main Line
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government why, in the light of the demand for track access exceeding the availability of train paths on the East Coast Main Line, open access operators are paying discounted variable track access charges.
tabling member printed	Lord Bradshaw
uin	HL4152
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2015 answer text <p>Existing Open Access Operators are charged the same Variable Track Access charges as franchised operators with the exception of the Capacity Charge. This is because implementing the full Control Period 5 (CP5) rates would equate to a real term average increase of 450% in the Capacity Charge from which Open Access Operators have no protection. In light of the Office of Rail Regulation’s statutory duties to promote the use of the railway network, protect the interests of users of railway services and to promote competition in the provision of railway services, they deemed it appropriate to hold Capacity Charge at CP4 rates for both existing services and any new entrant Open Access Operator in line with European law and their statutory duties. Any additional services introduced by existing Open Access Operators will be charged at CP5 rates.</p> answering member printed Baroness Kramer question first answered 20/01/2015 11:55:28 answering member 1557 label Biography information for Baroness Kramer
tabling member	2483 label Biography information for Lord Bradshaw

173598

registered interest
date	14/01/2015
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	Pensions: Fees and Charges
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the charges, fees and commissions paid by consumers in relation to private pensions are transparent.
tabling member printed	Lord McFall of Alcluith
uin	HL4158
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2015 answer text <p /> <p>The Government is committed to improving the transparency of costs and charges in workplace pension schemes. The Government’s Command Papers ‘Better Workplace Pensions: Further measures for savers’ and ‘Better Workplace Pensions: Putting savers interests first’ published in March and October 2014 set out a range of measures including a cap on charges in default fund arrangements, a ban on inappropriate charges and proposals to introduce minimum governance standards and improve transparency across workplace defined contribution schemes.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Government has recently consulted on draft legislation which, subject to parliamentary approval, will introduce new requirements on trustees to improve the transparency of costs and charges in occupational schemes from April 2015. Under these new requirements, trustees will be required to annually report on costs and charges for the first time. Similar rules are to be introduced by the Financial Conduct Authority to require the newly formed Independent Governance Committees to report on costs and charges in workplace personal pension schemes.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Later this year we will consult on ways to build on this first phase of enhanced transparency, to meet our duties under the Pensions Act 2014 requiring information about transaction costs to be disclosed to members of workplace pension schemes, and the publication of costs and charges information. The FCA also intends to consult on amending its rules to with a view to introducing equivalent enhanced transparency provisions for workplace personal pension schemes during 2015.</p> answering member printed Lord Freud question first answered 20/01/2015 15:03:14 answering member 3893 label Biography information for Lord Freud
tabling member	4148 label Biography information for Lord McFall of Alcluith

173599

registered interest
date	14/01/2015
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	Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken to promote (1) increased competition, and (2) the levying of fair fees and commissions, in the private pensions industry.
tabling member printed	Lord McFall of Alcluith
uin	HL4159
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2015 answer text <p /> <p>The Government and regulators have introduced a package of measures, including establishing Independent Governance Committees to improve governance in contract based pension schemes, improved governance standards for trust based schemes and the introduction of a 0.75 per cent cap on charges in the default funds of schemes used for automatic enrolment. Subject to Parliamentary approval, these changes will come into effect from April.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is also banning a number of charges which are no longer appropriate in the context of automatic enrolment into workplace pensions. From April 2015, we will extend the existing ban on consultancy charging to all contract-based schemes used for automatic enrolment. Likewise, adviser commission and Active Member Discounts, which penalise those who stop contributing or leave their employer and move jobs, will be banned in all schemes used for automatic enrolment from April 2016. We are also introducing measures to improve transparency throughout the value chain in the workplace pensions market and expect that this will lead to increased competition on costs and charges to the benefit of the consumer.</p><p> </p><p>The recent pensions flexibility reforms are also an opportunity for the retirement income industry to develop new products that meet the evolving needs of consumers. The new flexibility will help consumers choosing to select an annuity or another option to access their pension savings to get a better deal in a more competitive market place. The shape of the market will now be driven by the choices consumers make, placing power back into the hands of savers.</p><p> </p><p>Furthermore, as of the end of December, over 5.1 million workers have been automatically enrolled into a workplace pension. This is having a significant impact on the private pensions market and by 2020, we estimate that automatic enrolment will have generated an additional £8 to £12 billion a year in workplace pension saving. The growth in this market is supporting strong competition between providers and schemes.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Freud question first answered 20/01/2015 15:58:49 answering member 3893 label Biography information for Lord Freud
tabling member	4148 label Biography information for Lord McFall of Alcluith

173661

registered interest
date	14/01/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Housing: Construction
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the average (a) output in number of units per annum and (b) annual turnover is of the firms that have been allocated funds through the Builders Finance Fund.
tabling member constituency	Wolverhampton North East
tabling member printed	Emma Reynolds
uin	220715
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/01/2015 answer text <p>The fund will make investments over two years from 2015/16 to 2016/17. The funds must be drawn down by 31 March 2017.<br><br>The shortlisted bids to the Builders Finance Fund are currently undergoing due diligence and have the ability to deliver over 10,000 new homes. We have recently expanded the scope of the fund to enable smaller builders with schemes between 5 and 15 units to access this funding and the Homes and Communities Agency are currently engaging with the market to seek further bids for such schemes. The first contracts are due to be completed in the Spring with the first homes expected to be started in the first half of 2015.</p> answering member constituency Great Yarmouth answering member printed Brandon Lewis grouped question UIN 220716 220717 question first answered 19/01/2015 17:07:48 answering member 4009 label Biography information for Sir Brandon Lewis
tabling member	4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds

173662

registered interest
date	14/01/2015
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Housing: Construction
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much of the funds for the Builders Finance Fund has been (a) allocated and (b) spent.
tabling member constituency	Wolverhampton North East
tabling member printed	Emma Reynolds
uin	220716
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/01/2015 answer text <p>The fund will make investments over two years from 2015/16 to 2016/17. The funds must be drawn down by 31 March 2017.<br><br>The shortlisted bids to the Builders Finance Fund are currently undergoing due diligence and have the ability to deliver over 10,000 new homes. We have recently expanded the scope of the fund to enable smaller builders with schemes between 5 and 15 units to access this funding and the Homes and Communities Agency are currently engaging with the market to seek further bids for such schemes. The first contracts are due to be completed in the Spring with the first homes expected to be started in the first half of 2015.</p> answering member constituency Great Yarmouth answering member printed Brandon Lewis grouped question UIN 220715 220717 question first answered 19/01/2015 17:07:48 answering member 4009 label Biography information for Sir Brandon Lewis
tabling member	4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds