PQ: 12 December 2024

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2024-12-04.17866.h

Police: Translation Services

Home Office written question – answered at on 12 December 2024.

Alex Sobel Labour/Co-operative, Leeds Central and Headingley

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure translators used by police forces are impartial.

Diana R. Johnson The Minister of State, Home Department

Police are operationally independent so this is not a matter for the Home Office.

The National Police Language Services (NPLS) team oversees the procurement and provision of language and interpretation services for police forces across the UK .National Police Language Services (NPLS) | Police.uk (www.police.uk)

 

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2024-12-04.18027.h

Ministry of Justice: Interpreters and Translation Services

Ministry of Justice written question – answered at on 12 December 2024.

Freddie Van Mierlo Liberal Democrat, Henley and Thame

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of replacing external (a) translation and (b) interpretation services provided to her Department with services provided by departmental staff.

Sarah Sackman The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice

The Ministry of Justice considered the potential for bringing the service fully or partially in-house when assessing its options. The outcome of the assessment indicated an outsourced model continued to be the best value for taxpayers’ money, taking account of quality, deliverability, and cost.

 

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2024-12-04.18028.h

Ministry of Justice: Interpreters

Ministry of Justice written question – answered at on 12 December 2024.

Freddie Van Mierlo Liberal Democrat, Henley and Thame

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to ensure the adequacy of services provided by interpreters to her Department.

Sarah Sackman The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice

The Ministry of Justice operates a robust performance and quality regime for these services. Interpreter fulfilment of bookings is the service provided by suppliers under contract, and their performance is managed through contract management. The quality regime includes ensuring that interpreters on the Ministry of Justice register are qualified and security vetted, a rolling programme of spot checks on interpreters to ensure that they are meeting the quality requirements, and a complaints process that will direct quality assessment checks to interpreters that are subject to a complaint.

The suppliers forecast demand, and work to ensure that there is a pool of qualified interpreters available to the Ministry of Justice to fulfil our bookings.

 

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2024-12-04.18029.h

Ministry of Justice: Interpreters and Translation Services

Ministry of Justice written question – answered at on 12 December 2024.

Freddie Van Mierlo Liberal Democrat, Henley and Thame

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when she plans to publish the independent review of her Department’s language services.

Sarah Sackman The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice

We have been considering the findings of the independent review to help inform the development of new tender specifications. This is a complex process and covers a wide range of agencies within the Ministry of Justice. Once all internal governance has been completed the review will be released, we expect to publish the outcome by 31 December 2024.

 

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2024-12-03.HL3129.h

NHS: Interpreters

Department of Health and Social Care written question – answered at on 12 December 2024.

Baroness Coussins Crossbench

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Merron on 2 December (HL Deb col 905), what specific plans are or will be put in place to consult public service interpreters about the NHS 10-Year Health Plan given that they are not employed as NHS staff but work on a freelance basis.

Baroness Merron The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Health and Social Care

On 21 October, we launched a national conversation on the future of the National Health Service, inviting views from across the country on how to reform the NHS and make it fit for the future. This includes the Change NHS portal, which is open to everyone, and is available on the change.NHS.UK website. Public service interpreters can respond to the surveys on the website, including on the dedicated workforce section. We want a wide range of health and care staff to share their views, irrespective of whether they are NHS employees. We would welcome public service interpreters sharing their experience. We have been in touch with the National Register of Public Service Interpreters to ensure interpreters are aware of the engagement exercise.