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1135262

registered interest
date	27/06/2019
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	Pension Credit: Easington
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to increase the uptake of pension credit in Easington constituency.
tabling member constituency	Easington
tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
uin	270344
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government wants to ensure that <em>all </em>pensioners eligible can claim the Pension Credit to which they are rightly entitled. We welcome and encourage initiatives to promote take up of Pension Credit by local organisations who may often be best placed to understand the local circumstances and needs in the community.</p><p>On a national basis, the DWP targets activity on engaging with people who may be eligible to benefits at pivotal stages, such as when they claim State Pension or report a change in their circumstances. The DWP uses a wide range of channels to communicate information about benefits to potential customers; including information on <a href="https://gov.uk/" target="_blank">https://gov.uk/</a>, in leaflets and by telephone. DWP staff in Pension Centres and Jobcentres including visiting officers are able to provide help and advice about entitlement to benefits, as are staff in Local Authorities who administer Housing Benefit.</p><p>Potential customers can use the Pension Credit <a href="https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator</a> to check if they are likely to be eligible and get an estimate of what they may receive. People wishing to claim Pension Credit can do so by calling 0800 99 1234.</p><p>One of the best ways to reach eligible customers is through trusted stakeholder working in the community and we have developed the Pension Credit toolkit, as an on-line tool for agencies and welfare rights organisations to use in order to encourage Pension Credit take-up. It can be found at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit</a></p><p>The toolkit contains resources for anyone working with pensioners and includes guides to Pension Credit. It also contains publicity material and guidance designed to help older people understand how they could get Pension Credit and help organisations support someone applying for Pension Credit as well as ideas for encouraging take-up. The toolkit also provides links to information about disability and carers benefits.</p><p>Most recently we have provided to relevant stakeholders a fact sheet about Pension Credit and the changes introduced on 15 May for mixed age couples to ensure that accurate information is available in the places where people are most likely to seek information. In Easington there are just over 3000 pensioners already claiming Pension Credit.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 02/07/2019 13:55:42 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris

1134443

registered interest
date	25/06/2019
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	Personal Independence Payment: County Durham
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 20 June 2019 to Question 265489 on Personal Independence Payment, for what reason recent correspondence on casework enquiries to hon. Members states that waiting times for personal independence payments mandatory reconsiderations are 10 to 12 weeks in County Durham and table 7D, entitled MR clearance time (median calendar days), normal rules, by year of clearance, region and local authority of her Department's quarterly statistical publication, Personal Independence Payment: April 2013 to April 2019 states that such waiting times are 39 median calendar days.
tabling member constituency	Easington
tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
uin	269031
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2019 answer text <p>The figures published in table 7D of the publication “Personal Independence Payment: April 2013 to April 2019” are based on median calendar days that a Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) is cleared in each Financial Year. Clearance times can vary over time, and the median time is the middle value if all the times were ordered from lowest value to highest value.</p><p> </p><p>Table 7C of the same publication shows median clearance times by month for Great Britain as a whole, with April 2019 being the latest month official statistics have been published for.</p><p> </p><p>There is no legislative clearance target for a mandatory reconsideration. However, from late May 2019 claimants have been advised that, as a guide, they should hear from the Department within 10 weeks.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 01/07/2019 14:01:58 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris

1134444

registered interest
date	25/06/2019
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	Motor Vehicles: Exhaust Emissions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on supporting the UK car industry through the Government's transition to zero emissions policy.
tabling member constituency	Easington
tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
uin	269032
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p>BEIS Ministers regularly engage with their counterparts in other departments on clean growth matters including ultra low and zero emission vehicle policy. We set out in our Road to Zero strategy published last year our mission to put the UK at the forefront of the design and manufacturing of zero emission vehicles and for all new cars and vans to be effectively zero emission by 2040.</p><p> </p><p>The Government’s has also committed £1 billion with industry to 2023 through the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC), to research, develop and commercialise the next generation of low carbon technologies and £274 million committed by Government to the Faraday Battery Challenge to support the design, development and manufacture of electric batteries.</p><p> </p><p>Our Future of Mobility 2040 mission is ambitious but achievable and we believe it is a key part of the answer to our long term transport air quality and greenhouse gas issues. It puts us at the forefront of the global transition to zero emission vehicles. We have consulted extensively with stakeholders across numerous sectors including environmental groups, the automotive industry and other experts, and believe we have identified the right balance between our environmental ambitions and deliverability, giving consumers and industry time to transition.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is committed to supporting the transition to zero emission vehicles, which can cut carbon, reduce air pollution and help us grow the economy as part of our Industrial Strategy.</p> answering member constituency Pendle answering member printed Andrew Stephenson question first answered 02/07/2019 14:10:06 answering member 4044 label Biography information for Andrew Stephenson
tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris

1134470

registered interest
date	25/06/2019
answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
hansard heading	Drugs: Misuse
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has conducted an impact assessment of the potential effect of the planned cessation of ring-fencing of the Public Health Grant in 2020 on the (a) quality of drug treatment and (b) rate of drug-related deaths.
tabling member constituency	Easington
tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
uin	269034
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government is concerned by the number of drug-related deaths, which is largely caused by an ageing cohort of heroin users. We are supporting local areas to develop a more joined up approach to commissioning and delivering the range of services that are essential to supporting recovery and preventing drug-related deaths. In October, the Home Office announced that there would be a major independent review of drug misuse. This will look at a wide range of issues, including the system of support and enforcement around drug abuse, to better inform our thinking about what more can be done to tackle drug harms including deaths. The review will inform our thinking about what more can be done to mitigate the harm caused through drug use.</p><p> </p><p>Local authorities will receive £3.1 billion in 2019/20, ring-fenced exclusively for use on public health, including drug addiction. We are investing over £16 billion in local authority public health services over the five years of the 2015 Spending Review until 2020/21. Public health funding for 2020 onwards, including for addiction services, will be considered carefully in the next Spending Review, in the light of the available evidence.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency South Ribble answering member printed Seema Kennedy grouped question UIN 269042 question first answered 01/07/2019 15:13:26 answering member 4455 label Biography information for Seema Kennedy
tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris

1134541

registered interest
date	25/06/2019
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	BBC
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June to Question 265492: BBC, what his policy is on funding public service broadcasting in the (a) North East of England and (b) Easington constituency.
tabling member constituency	Easington
tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
uin	269035
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2019 answer text <p>Public service broadcasting is funded either through the licence fee for the BBC; or through commercial activities of the commercial public service broadcasters, such as ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5.</p><p> </p><p>Public service broadcasters hold a responsibility to ensure that they serve audiences across all parts of the UK and all demographics. The Government continues to encourage all broadcasters to consider what more they can do to increase investment and strengthen their appeal to audiences across the nations and regions, including in the North East of England.</p> answering member constituency Stourbridge answering member printed Margot James question first answered 01/07/2019 15:25:04 answering member 4115 label Biography information for Margot James
tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris

1134552

registered interest
date	25/06/2019
answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
hansard heading	Prescriptions: Fees and Charges
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June 2019 to Question 266839 on Prescriptions: Fees and Charges, how his Department monitors the National Health Service Business Services Authority in relation to appeals against wrongly issued prescription penalty charge notices.
tabling member constituency	Easington
tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
uin	269036
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2019 answer text <p>The NHS Business Services Authority the body responsible for issuing Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs), does not operate an appeals process against wrongly issued PCNs. However, we are informed that the NHS Business Services Authority has reduced the number of wrongly issued PCNs from an average of 30% across several years to 25% in 2018/19.</p> answering member constituency South Ribble answering member printed Seema Kennedy question first answered 01/07/2019 15:49:53 answering member 4455 label Biography information for Seema Kennedy
tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris

1133888

registered interest
date	21/06/2019
answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
hansard heading	Drugs: Misuse
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effect of the change in the level of the Public Health Grant on the (a) quality of drug treatment services and (b) number of drug-related deaths in the 2015 to 2019 Spending Review period .
tabling member constituency	Easington
tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
uin	267731
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/06/2019 answer text <p>The Government is concerned by the number of drug-related deaths, which is largely caused by an ageing cohort of heroin users. We are supporting local areas to develop a more joined up approach to commissioning and delivering the range of services that are essential to supporting recovery and preventing drug-related deaths. In October, the Home Office announced that there would be a major independent review of drug misuse. This will look at a wide range of issues, including the system of support and enforcement around drug abuse, to better inform our thinking about what more can be done to tackle drug harms including deaths. The review shall inform our thinking about what more can be done to mitigate the harm caused through drug use.</p><p>Local authorities will receive £3.1 billion in 2019/20, ring-fenced exclusively for use on public health, including drug addiction. We are investing over £16 billion in local authority public health services over the five years of the 2015 Spending Review until 2020/21. Public health funding for 2020 onwards, including for addiction services, will be considered carefully in the next Spending Review, in the light of the available evidence.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency South Ribble answering member printed Seema Kennedy grouped question UIN 267732 question first answered 26/06/2019 16:34:53 answering member 4455 label Biography information for Seema Kennedy
tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris

1133889

registered interest
date	21/06/2019
answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
hansard heading	Drugs: Misuse
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the effect of the change to the level of the Public Health Grant over the forthcoming 2019 Spending Review on the (a) quality of drug treatment services and (b) number of drug-related deaths.
tabling member constituency	Easington
tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
uin	267732
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/06/2019 answer text <p>The Government is concerned by the number of drug-related deaths, which is largely caused by an ageing cohort of heroin users. We are supporting local areas to develop a more joined up approach to commissioning and delivering the range of services that are essential to supporting recovery and preventing drug-related deaths. In October, the Home Office announced that there would be a major independent review of drug misuse. This will look at a wide range of issues, including the system of support and enforcement around drug abuse, to better inform our thinking about what more can be done to tackle drug harms including deaths. The review shall inform our thinking about what more can be done to mitigate the harm caused through drug use.</p><p>Local authorities will receive £3.1 billion in 2019/20, ring-fenced exclusively for use on public health, including drug addiction. We are investing over £16 billion in local authority public health services over the five years of the 2015 Spending Review until 2020/21. Public health funding for 2020 onwards, including for addiction services, will be considered carefully in the next Spending Review, in the light of the available evidence.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency South Ribble answering member printed Seema Kennedy grouped question UIN 267731 question first answered 26/06/2019 16:34:53 answering member 4455 label Biography information for Seema Kennedy
tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris

1133895

registered interest
date	21/06/2019
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	Personal Independence Payment: County Duram
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 20 June 2019 to Question 265490, what steps her Department is taking to (a) assess staff efficiency and (b) identify the adequacy of staffing levels to manage changes in mandatory reconsideration caseloads in the absence of data on staff levels.
tabling member constituency	Easington
tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
uin	267733
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/06/2019 answer text <p>With reference to the previous question regarding PIP mandatory reconsideration work; for new claims and award reviews, these are managed at a national level to ensure that cases which have been outstanding for longest are actioned first. This means that a claimant could have their mandatory reconsideration considered at any of our 12 sites.</p><p>Operational Managers are in place at all of the sites to ensure that mandatory reconsiderations are processed as efficiently as possible.</p><p>The staffing for mandatory reconsiderations in PIP and across all benefits is currently adequate and is in constant review to ensure caseloads can be processed as efficiently as possible.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 26/06/2019 12:06:42 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris

1133909

registered interest
date	21/06/2019
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Electric Vehicles: Charging Points
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the report entitled, Road to Zero, published by his Department in July 2018, what steps is he taking to ensure the installation of electric vehicle charging infrastructure to meet the 2040 emissions target.
tabling member constituency	Easington
tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
uin	267734
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/06/2019 answer text <p>Our vision is to have one of the best electric vehicle infrastructure networks in the world. This means a network for current and prospective electric vehicle drivers that is affordable, reliable, accessible and secure. The Road to Zero strategy includes new commitments to massively expand electric and low emission vehicle infrastructure across the country.</p><p> </p><p>Government funding and leadership, alongside private sector investment has supported the installation of more than 17,000 public chargepoints. This includes over 1,700 rapid chargepoints - one of the largest networks in Europe. Our grant schemes and our £400m public-private Charging Infrastructure Investment Fund will see thousands more electric vehicle chargepoints installed across the UK. We will consult on proposals for chargepoints to be installed with all newly built homes in England, where appropriate. Highways England has a commitment of £15m to ensure there are chargepoints (rapid where possible) every 20 miles on 95% of the Strategic Road Network by 2020.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 27/06/2019 14:15:18 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris