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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

641855

registered interest
date	22/11/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Languages: Teaching Methods
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the Modern Foreign Languages Pedagogy Review published by the Teaching Schools Council on 18 November.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL3425
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/12/2016 answer text <p>The Government is committed to increasing the proportion of the population gaining language qualifications. As a result of the English Baccalaureate, the number of students studying a language at GCSE has increased from 40% in 2010 to 49% in 2016.</p><p> </p><p>Additionally, we want to improve the quality of language teaching. We welcome the Teaching Schools Council’s report on modern languages teaching practice in secondary schools and encourage schools and teachers to consider its recommendations in reviewing their current practice.</p> answering member printed Lord Nash question first answered 07/12/2016 14:30:36 answering member 4270 label Biography information for Lord Nash
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

640771

registered interest
date	21/11/2016
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Erasmus+ Programme
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the UK will continue to participate in the Erasmus Plus programme following the withdrawal of the UK from the EU, and if not, what assessment they have made of the impact on (1) graduate employment, and (2) the provision of modern foreign language degree courses at UK universities.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL3365
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/11/2016 answer text <p>Until our departure from the EU, we remain a fully paid up Member State, with all the rights and obligations that entails. Post-exit access to Erasmus+ will be a matter for the negotiations, which follow the triggering of Article 50. We will work through the implications for future years as part of the wider negotiations.</p><p>The Treasury guarantee to underwrite competitively bid for funding commitments up to the point at which the UK departs the EU includes those parts of Erasmus+ that are bid for competitively.</p> answering member printed Baroness Neville-Rolfe question first answered 30/11/2016 13:06:07 answering member 4284 label Biography information for Baroness Neville-Rolfe
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

637765

registered interest
date	16/11/2016
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Public Sector: Interpreters
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to guarantee the residency status of non-UK EU nationals currently working as public service interpreters in the criminal justice system and the NHS, following the withdrawal of the UK from the EU.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL3279
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/11/2016 answer text <p>The Prime Minister has been clear that she wants to protect the status of EU nationals already living and working in the UK after the UK leaves the EU, and the only circumstances in which that wouldn’t be possible is if British citizens’ rights in other EU Member States were not protected in return.</p> answering member printed Baroness Williams of Trafford question first answered 24/11/2016 16:26:20 answering member 4311 label Biography information for Baroness Williams of Trafford
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

637767

registered interest
date	16/11/2016
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Public Sector: Interpreters
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions have been held between the Ministry of Justice and the Home Office about the eligibility of public service interpreters for a criminal records check at enhanced disclosure level; and what has been the outcome of those discussions.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL3280
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/12/2016 answer text <p>An individual who is seeking to work with children or vulnerable adults may be eligible for an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, eligibility for which is set out in Part V of the Police Act 1997. Eligibility takes into account the activities and circumstances under which the person is performing the role, and not necessarily the profession.</p><p>Interpreters in certain public service positions may already be eligible for enhanced checks, for example those working within prisons or those working in certain roles with children or vulnerable adults. It is for an employer to satisfy themselves that the relevant position is eligible under the current legal provisions. Detailed guidance on eligibility is provided by the Disclosure and Barring Service.</p> answering member printed Baroness Williams of Trafford question first answered 22/12/2016 12:36:19 answering member 4311 label Biography information for Baroness Williams of Trafford
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins