The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kirkwood of Kirkhope on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many families (1) with a disabled child, (2) where a parent has died, and (3) in problem debt, they estimate will be affected by limiting the child element of tax credits to the first two children.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
The information requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what guidance they give to first-tier tribunals about what is a reasonable time to hear and determine asylum and immigration appeals.
Lord Faulks
Guidance is not given to the First-tier Tribunals about what is a reasonable time to hear and determine asylum and immigration appeals. The Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) Rules 2014 provide an overriding objective for the Tribunal to deal with cases fairly and justly including avoiding delay, so far as is compatible with proper consideration of the issues.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the cuts in the budget of the Ministry of Justice on the ability of first-tier tribunals to hear and determine immigration and asylum appeals.
Lord Faulks
The Government is confident that there is sufficient funding to enable the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration & Asylym Chamber) to hear and determine the number of immigration and asylum appeals to be received during 2015-2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Lister of Burtersett on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government (1) how many, and (2) what proportion, of those affected by the cuts to tax credits due to take effect in 2016 are self-employed.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
This information is not available.
This Government is committed to moving from a high welfare, high tax, low wage economy to a lower welfare, lower tax, higher wage society. As the Chancellor has made clear, the Government will set out at Autumn Statement how we plan to achieve the same goal of reforming tax credits, saving the money we need to save to secure our economy, while at the same time helping in the transition.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Lister of Burtersett on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on work incentives of the changes to universal credit work allowances announced in the Budget.
Lord Freud
Universal Credit (UC) has been designed to reduce poverty and ensure work pays. This remains the case following the Summer Budget.
The Budget made a number of changes that could have an effect on work incentives, such as introducing of the National Living Wage, that will help ensure this country moves from a low wage, high tax society to a high wage, low tax society.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Manzoor on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many (1) children, (2) kinship carers, and (3) victims of domestic violence, they estimate will be affected by limiting the child element of tax credits to the first two children.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
This information requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Parminter on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will publish the responses that were received following the letter sent by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Water, Forestry, Rural Affairs and Resource Management to all departments in March asking how each was addressing the timber procurement policy.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
We have no plans to publish the responses from Permanent Secretaries to Defra officials; however, where appropriate, Departments have covered timber under their supply chain reporting under the Greening Government Commitments.
Defra officials and the Central Point of Expertise on Timber (CPET) have used the responses to the letter sent to 15 Departments, to inform facilitated discussions with Departments. These discussions provided targeted support for effective Timber Procurement Policy (TPP) reporting for managers and leaders, as well as an opportunity to share good practice. For example, a standard set of legal clauses has been developed (in line with guidance from Cabinet Office) for use in future construction procurement projects, to mandate compliance against the TPP and provide for appropriate evidence from the supply chain. Other Departments have Guidance Notes to support the TPP and have included CPET-recommended wording in technical specifications. CPET continue to train new procurers across Government, to ensure they understand how to implement the TPP. This week 30 staff from MoD are attending training.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Parminter on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the 2014–15 Greening Government Commitments report is in preparation; and whether that document will report on the commitments set out in the 2012 Natural Environment White Paper.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The 2014-15 Annual Report on Government’s progress on the Greening Government Commitments is in preparation and expected to be published later this year.
The Greening Government Commitments to take action on sustainable procurement and to report transparently on actions to address biodiversity and reducing the environmental impacts of food and catering services are aligned with the 2011 Natural Environment White Paper commitments. Reporting on both of these issues is therefore routinely incorporated in each year’s Greening Government Commitment report, including the upcoming 2014/15 report.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Pearson of Rannoch on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the United Kingdom does not have a free trade agreement with China, and what assessment they have made of whether such an agreement would help to boost trade between the United Kingdom and China.
Lord Maude of Horsham
The recent EU Trade Strategy emphasised the EU’s engagement in deepening and rebalancing our relationship with China in a mutually beneficial way. The ongoing negotiation of a bilateral investment agreement is the top priority towards this objective and will bring substantial benefits for both the UK and the EU. The UK Government fully supports the ambition of further deepening the EU-China relationship through an FTA. Whilst no formal assessment has yet been made to ascertain the impact of an FTA with China we anticipate the benefits will be significant.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Tanlaw on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the prime meridian can be correctly identified and correlated with GPS by the construction (with permission) in Greenwich Park of a suitable marker located at zero longitude.
Baroness Neville-Rolfe
As the reference frame for the Global Positioning System (GPS) is established through a mathematical interpretation of satellite radio signals, rather than a physical meridian, it is not conceptually appropriate to represent it in the same way as other meridians have historically been marked at Greenwich.
We do not see any practical benefit in changing the reference point for UT1 even if it was a decision the UK Government could make unilaterally. Such a change could cause confusion as could use of the term “Greenwich Meridian Time”. In line with the International Telecommunication Union Radio Regulations, all time‑signal broadcasts in the UK transmit. the international timescale UTC, and so any change to UT1 or GMT would have no impact on the time-signal available to the UK public.