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  • Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what verification process is used by HM Revenue and Customs to ensure that the level of arrears paid to workers using the self-correction process by employers found to be non-compliant with the (a) national minimum wage and (b) national living wage is a true reflection of the amount the workforce is owed.

    Margot James

    Where HM Revenue and Customs instructs employers to self-correct, the employer must declare details of the arrears subsequently paid to workers. HMRC perform checks before accepting that pay has been corrected.

    HMRC take the circumstances of individual employers into account when instructing to self-correct. If the value of the arrears repaid does not reflect what HMRC expect based on the facts of the case, they can open an investigation to ensure that workers receive what they are owed. Where employers need assistance determining the value of the arrears owed, HMRC will work with them to ensure they get it right.

    HMRC’s assurance process involves performing a sample check that arrears have been paid correctly. Workers are selected and contacted by telephone and correspondence to confirm that they have received the arrears they are owed, in the amount that the employer has reported.

  • Kate Green – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Kate Green – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Green on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with energy suppliers on tariffs for customers who do not elect to pay for services online.

    Jesse Norman

    Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Ministers will be meeting energy supply companies in due course to discuss a range of issues.

    Under the terms of the supply licence, suppliers are required to offer customers a wide choice of payment methods, and this must include payment by cash and payment in advance through a prepayment meter.

  • Brendan O’Hara – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Brendan O’Hara – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Brendan O’Hara on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps the Government is taking to tackle global climate change.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The UK played an important role in securing the global climate Agreement reached in Paris in December 2015. The UK has started its domestic process to enable ratification of the Paris Agreement and will complete this before the end of the year.

    The UK also played a key role in securing a major global climate deal to combat aviation emissions, reached at the 39th Assembly of the International Civil Aviation Organization on 6 October 2016.

    We will provide at least £5.8bn from the UK aid budget between 2016 and 2020 as climate finance which will continue to support developing countries to mitigate and adapt to climate change. This should help promote green investment required to meet the well below 2 degree goal set in Paris.

    Domestically we are delivering against the Paris climate deal through our UK Climate Change Act which commits us to reduce emissions by at least 80% by 2050. One of the first acts of this Government was to pass the fifth carbon budget into law – it is equivalent to a 57% reduction on 1990 levels by 2030.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when his Department plans to publish the consultation on the Government’s commitment to phase out coal-fired power stations.

    Jesse Norman

    Most of the UK’s existing coal fired power stations are old, relatively inefficient and require investment to reduce the level of damaging pollutants they emit. We expect to consult shortly on the closure of unabated coal stations.

  • Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 29 September 2016 to Question 44820, whether any subsequent action is taken by HM Revenue and Customs against employers named and shamed for non-compliance with the national minimum wage and national living wage to check that they have changed their business practice and are continuing to pay their workforce legally.

    Margot James

    HM Revenue and Customs does not have a formal process for revisiting previously non-compliant employers.

    However, HMRC responds to 100% of worker complaints, including into employers where arrears have previously been found. As well as responding to complaints, HMRC also maintains a risk-led targeted enforcement programme which involves proactively investigating employers in high-risk sectors.

    HMRC will always take action where they believe an employer is not paying the National Minimum Wage/National Living Wage to ensure that every worker receives what they are legally entitled to.

  • Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Monaghan on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many households in the Highland area of Scotland with dynamically teleswitched meters receive their electricity supply from Scottish Power.

    Jesse Norman

    The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy does not hold estimates on the number of households in the Highland area of Scotland with dynamically teleswitched meters who receive their electricity supply under Scottish Power’s Comfort Control tariff.

    In Ofgem’s response to CMA Notice of Remedies published in August 2015, it was estimated that there were 160,000 households across Great Britain with dynamically teleswitched meters in operation at the end of 2014:

    https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/561e1fbaed915d39bc000013/Ofgem__revised_with_additional_material_.pdf

    “

  • Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Monaghan on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many households in the Highland area of Scotland with dynamically teleswitched meters receive their electricity supply under Scottish Power’s Comfort Control tariff.

    Jesse Norman

    The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy does not hold estimates on the number of households in the Highland area of Scotland with dynamically teleswitched meters who receive their electricity supply under Scottish Power’s Comfort Control tariff.

    In Ofgem’s response to CMA Notice of Remedies published in August 2015, it was estimated that there were 160,000 households across Great Britain with dynamically teleswitched meters in operation at the end of 2014:

    https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/561e1fbaed915d39bc000013/Ofgem__revised_with_additional_material_.pdf

    “

  • Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Monaghan on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many households in the UK have their electricity supplies controlled by dynamically teleswitched meters.

    Jesse Norman

    The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy does not hold estimates on the number of households in the UK who have their electricity supplies controlled by dynamically teleswitched meters.

    In Ofgem’s response to CMA Notice of Remedies published in August 2015, it was estimated that there were 160,000 households across Great Britain with dynamically teleswitched meters in operation at the end of 2014:

    https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/561e1fbaed915d39bc000013/Ofgem__revised_with_additional_material_.pdf

    “

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the UK leaving the EU on funding for dementia research.

    Joseph Johnson

    The Government is committed to maintain and enhance the strength of our research base. This is why we have protected the science resource budget in real terms from its 2015/16 level of £4.7 billion for the rest of the parliament, as well as committing to invest in new scientific infrastructure on a record scale – £6.9 billion over the period 2015-2021, including £150 million for the Dementia Research Institute.

    The Treasury decision to underwrite the grants of competitively bid for EU research funding will give British participants and their EU partners the assurance and certainty needed to plan ahead for projects that can run over many years. We are committed to ensure that the UK continues to be a world leader in international science, including research on dementia.

  • Margaret Ritchie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Margaret Ritchie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ritchie on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts and officials in the Irish government and the Northern Ireland Executive on trade and export opportunities in (a) Northern Europe, (b) the US and (c) Asia Pacific countries.

    Greg Hands

    On 1st August 2016, my Rt hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade held meetings in Belfast with Northern Ireland Executive First Minister Arlene Foster MLA and Minister for the Economy Simon Hamilton MLA. A range of topics were discussed including growing exports for Northern Ireland and establishing new UK trading relationships around the globe. During these constructive discussions he underlined the importance that he places on the Department for International Trade serving the whole of the United Kingdom.

    The Department for International Trade continues to engage with Republic of Ireland officials, collaborating on trade and exports including most recently at the meeting of UK Permanent Secretaries with their Republic of Ireland Counterparts in London on 7 October.