Alex Ballinger MP: written questions
66 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Tax Collection: DebtsTreasuryTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29363More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with HMRC on instructions given to debt collection agencies in the event of (a) an unresolved dispute or (b) error on a taxpayer's account.
Answer: The debt collection agencies (DCAs) that HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) collaborates with are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and are strictly bound by HMRC's processes and guidance.HMRC undertakes regular reviews, including the monitoring o...
Answered 13 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordFire and Rescue ServicesHome OfficeTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29353More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to improve morale in the fire service.
Answer: It is a government priority to drive meaningful culture change across the fire and rescue sector. Our fire professionals work under significant pressure and in challenging circumstances, so it is important that the Fire and Rescue Authorities and the Fire...
Answered 14 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordWest Midlands Fire ServiceHome OfficeTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29351More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the West Midlands fire authority plan to bring back familiarisation visits.
Answer: Familiarisation visits, and other types of training and community engagement, are a local operational matter. It is for the West Midlands Fire and Rescue Authority and Service to determine their priorities on these types of activities.
Answered 13 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordFire and Rescue Services: TrainingHome OfficeTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29349More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure national standards in the training of fire service personnel.
Answer: Fire and rescue authorities are responsible for ensuring that firefighters receive the training they need in order to safely respond to the wide range of incidents that they attend. The National Fire Chiefs Council maintains national operational guidance ...
Answered 13 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordParental LeaveDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 29 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 27356More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will take steps to increase statutory parental leave.
Answer: The Government is aware that the parental leave system requires improvement and action to deliver this has already begun. The Employment Rights Bill will make Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave ‘day one’ rights, increasing the flexibility of parent...
Answered 7 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordMotorcycles: LicensingDepartment for TransportTabled 7 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22489More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the Motorcycle Industry Association’s publication entitled A Licence to Net Zero, published in October 2023.
Answer: My Department will be meeting the Motorcycle Industry Association at the Motorcycle Strategic Focus Group later this month to discuss the A Licence to Net Zero plan, alongside other ideas put forward by the motorcycle industry.
Answered 13 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordMotorcycles: LicensingDepartment for TransportTabled 7 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22488More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions she has had with the Motorcycle Industry Association on user licensing for powered light vehicles.
Answer: My Department will be meeting the Motorcycle Industry Association at the Motorcycle Strategic Focus Group later this month to discuss the A Licence to Net Zero plan, alongside other ideas put forward by the motorcycle industry.
Answered 13 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordMotorcycles: LicensingDepartment for TransportTabled 7 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22487More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she plans to consult on introducing licence upgrade courses for powered light vehicles.
Answer: The Government is considering plans to review existing requirements for motorcycle training, testing and licensing, taking account of long-standing Department for Transport and Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency plans and recent sector proposals.Those wi...
Answered 13 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordMotorcycles: LicensingDepartment for TransportTabled 7 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22486More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the total number of passes for the AM moped licence was in 2024; and what assessment she has made of the potential merits of conducting a review of user licensing for powered light vehicles.
Answer: The Government is considering plans to review existing requirements for motorcycle training, testing and licensing, taking account of long-standing Department for Transport and Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency plans and recent sector proposals.Those wi...
Answered 13 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordTransport: DocumentsDepartment for TransportTabled 7 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 22485More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to tackle issues related to falsified (a) driving licences and (b) other transport-related documents created by AI.
Answer: The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has processes in place to identify fake and forged documents including genuine documents that may have been altered. These measures help to make original documents difficult to counterfeit and forgeries easie...
Answered 14 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordNHS: DrugsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 6 Dec 2024AnsweredUIN 18467More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to tackle medication shortages.
Answer: We have inherited ongoing global supply problems that continue to impact medicine availability. We know how frustrating and distressing this can be for patients, and we are working closely with industry, the National Health Service, manufacturers, and oth...
Answered 12 Dec 2024
Original Parliament recordDrugs: WasteDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 6 Dec 2024AnsweredUIN 18466More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce medication wastage.
Answer: Medicine wastage can be reduced by ensuring that medicines are not overprescribed and those that are prescribed are taken as intended, resulting in the best outcomes for patients.Overprescribing can be addressed by taking a shared decision-making approach...
Answered 12 Dec 2024
Original Parliament recordDangerous Driving: FinesDepartment for TransportTabled 6 Dec 2024AnsweredUIN 18465More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to enforce stricter penalties for (a) unsafe driving and (b) speeding.
Answer: Since the general election, the Department has begun work on a new Road Safety Strategy, the first in over a decade. The Department will share more details in due course.
Answered 11 Dec 2024
Original Parliament recordRoads: AccidentsDepartment for TransportTabled 6 Dec 2024AnsweredUIN 18464More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the number of road fatalities.
Answer: Since the general election, the Department has begun work on a new Road Safety Strategy, the first in over a decade. The Department will share more details in due course.
Answered 10 Dec 2024
Original Parliament recordBreast Cancer: DiagnosisDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 6 Dec 2024AnsweredUIN 18463More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve early detection of breast cancer in women under 50 who do not routinely undergo mammogram screenings.
Answer: Improving early diagnosis of cancer, including breast cancer, is a priority for NHS England. We will improve cancer survival rates and hit all National Health Service cancer waiting time targets, so that no patient waits longer than they should.Screening ...
Answered 12 Dec 2024
Original Parliament recordBTEC QualificationsDepartment for EducationTabled 11 Oct 2024AnsweredUIN 8731More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans her Department has to consult (a) teachers and (b) students in relation to its planned phase-out of BTEC qualifications.
Answer: This government has not set out plans to phase out applied general qualifications.In July, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced the review of qualifications reform. The rapid review is focused on Level 3 qualifications cur...
Answered 21 Oct 2024
Original Parliament record
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