Universal Credit Implementation: Monitoring DWP's Performance in 1012-13 - HC 1209
Universal Credit Implementation: Monitoring DWP's Performance in 1012-13 - HC 1209

Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Work and Pensions Committee

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2014-04-09

Total Pages: 40

ISBN-13: 0215070763

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There remains worrying uncertainty about the new Universal Credit (UC) IT system. This includes how it will work, how much it will cost, and who will develop it. National roll-out of UC was due to begin in October 2013. But problems with IT systems meant that major changes to the implementation timetable were made in July and then again in December 2013. Currently, UC claims are still limited to 10 Pathfinder Jobcentres. New claims are not expected to be extended to the whole of Great Britain until 2016; and the bulk of existing claimants will not move over to UC until 2016-17. Only 4,280 people were claiming Universal Credit by December 2013 and the majority of these claims were of the simplest nature. By comparison, in the same month, 1.22 million people were claiming Jobseekers Allowance. The DWP is developing a new 'end-state solution' for UC IT which will eventually replace the IT system currently in use in the UC Pathfinders. This is costing £25-32 million to develop up to November 2014, with no indication of how much more it will cost in the long-term. The Government has hampered the Committee's scrutiny of UC implementation by not providing accurate, timely and detailed information. And there is a lack of detail on how support for vulnerable people being provided in partnership with local authorities, housing providers and the voluntary sector will operate. Delays to UC implementation mean that local authorities will now administer housing benefit for much longer than anticipated.

Identity Card Technologies
Identity Card Technologies

Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Science and Technology Committee

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2006-08-04

Total Pages: 204

ISBN-13: 0215030478

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This report focuses upon the Home Office's identity cards scheme, which uses various technologies including biometrics, information and communication technology (ICT) and smart cards. It explores the ways in which scientific advice, risk and evidence are being managed in relation to technologies that are continually developing. The Home Office has followed good practice by the establishment of advisory committees, the use of Office of Government Commerce (OGC) Gateway Reviews and the development of risk management strategies, along with a policy of gradual implementation. But the Committee has identified weaknesses in the use of scientific advice and evidence. There has been a lack of transparency surrounding the incorporation of scientific advice, the procurement process and the ICT system. Consultations have been limited in scope and their objectives have been unclear. Only some aspects of the scheme such as the biometrics have been determined. The Home Office's decisions demonstrate an inconsistent approach to scientific evidence, and the Committee is concerned that choices regarding biometric technology have preceded trials. With extensive trialling still to take place, the Committee is sceptical about the validity of projected costs. The Committee recommends that the Home Office seeks advice on ICT from senior and experienced professionals and establishes an ICT assurance committee. It is crucial that the Home Office increases clarity and transparency across the programme, not only in problem areas. The programme should also be flexible enough to change should evidence emerge that contradicts existing assumptions.

The Sandia Pulsed Reactor Facility (SPRF)
The Sandia Pulsed Reactor Facility (SPRF)

Author: P. D. O'Brien

Publisher:

Published: 1962

Total Pages: 46

ISBN-13:

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The Sandia Pulsed Reactor Facility (SPRF) is a laboratory facility specifically designed for radiation effects experiments which require an intense pulse of fast neutrons and gamma rays.

Reserves in the Future Force 2020
Reserves in the Future Force 2020

Author: Great Britain. Ministry of Defence

Publisher: Stationery Office/Tso

Published: 2013-07-01

Total Pages: 88

ISBN-13: 9780101865524

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This White Paper sets out the future relationships Defence seeks with reservists and their families, their employers and society. Under the Future Reserves 2020 programme the Government has committed an additional £1.8 billion over ten year. The route from selection, is being simplified, making it easier for reservists to get to the level of training required. There will be improved alignment of pay and benefits with regulars. Reservists' total remuneration will be increased through the provision of a paid annual leave entitlement. From April 2015, when the new Armed Forces pension scheme is introduced, reservists will accrue pension entitlements for time spent on training as well as when mobilised. Welfare support will also be delivered to regulars and reservists alike, and their families, according to the impact of military service and their need. Recruitment of Army Reserve officers and those leaving the Regular Army will be encouraged to join the Reserves through bonuses of up to £5,000. A National Relationship Management scheme will be established to strengthen relationships with employer organisations and the largest employers from both the public and private sector and there will be provision of extra financial support to small and medium sized employers. New legislation will be introduced to enable mobilisation for the full range of tasks which our Armed Forces may be asked to undertake. The Territorial Army will also be renamed the 'Army Reserve' to reflect the significant changes in its role and its integration into the Whole Force.

Sink the Belgrano
Sink the Belgrano

Author: Mike Rossiter

Publisher: Random House

Published: 2009-11-10

Total Pages: 410

ISBN-13: 1407034111

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On the evening of 30 March, 1982, Commander David Hall, chief engineer of the British nuclear submarine HMS Conqueror received a telephone call giving him the order to 'store for war'. At first he didn't believe it. In the early hours of 2 April, Argentine forces invaded the Falkland Isles. The sinking of the Belgrano was one of the most dramatic moments of the Falklands conflict. For many it signalled Britain's entry into the war and it has been seen as a politically motivated decision deliberately designed to take the country irrevocably into the fight. Now Mike Rossiter - with unprecedented access to sailors from the Belgrano and HMS Conqueror - gives us a dramatic and definitive retelling of the events that led up to the sinking. With all the pace and tension of a thriller, Sink the Belgrano takes us inside the battle for the South Atlantic and shows us the human drama behind the famous, and controversial, Sun headline 'Gotcha!' We track the collision course between the British submarine Conqueror and the Argentine warship - as the two sides and everyone aboard head towards the climactic moment just outside the exclusion zone set up by the British around the Falkland Isles. We witness the behind-the-scenes arguments , discussions and powerbroking that led to the decision to fire the three torpedoes. And, for the first time, we hear from the sailors on both sides - the personal testimony of the hunt for and attack on the Belgrano, and from the Argentine side the experience of being under attack and the sinking that left 340 members of her crew dead.

Trade Unions in a Neoliberal World
Trade Unions in a Neoliberal World

Author: Gary Daniels

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2009

Total Pages: 401

ISBN-13: 0415426634

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Written by very well-respected contributors, this comprehensive volume provides readers with an academic examination and comparison of the politics of industrial relations in the UK and Europe.

Identity Cards
Identity Cards

Author: Great Britain. Home Office

Publisher:

Published: 2003

Total Pages: 20

ISBN-13:

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Following the consultation exercise on entitlement/identity cards launched in July 2002, the government has decided to begin the process of introducing a national identity cards scheme. This is part of a strategy to address growing threats to security and prosperity from illegal immigration and working, organised crime and terrorism, identity theft and fraudulent access to public services. This report outlines the proposed implementation strategy for this process, divided into two stages. The first stage will involve the publication of draft legislation for the introduction of the scheme, and will include establishing a National Identify Register, more secure passports and driving licences based on biometric technology, making a voluntary plain identify card available for those who do not need a passport or driving licence and choose to take the option, and introducing mandatory biometric ID documents for foreign nationals staying in this country, in accordance with European law. The second stage would involved a move to a compulsory card scheme, following Parliamentary approval, technological availability and clarification that it was fully affordable within future agreed spending plans. A separate document which sets out the responses to the consultation exercise and results of surveys on identity cards is also available (Cm 6019, ISBN 0101601921).