The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2014-06-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what types of premises will be excluded from the wider retail use class announced in the Budget 2014.
Nick Boles
We will consult in due course. The consultation will include proposals on the wider retail use class announced in the Budget 2014.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Menzies on 2014-06-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to promote golfing holidays in the (a) North West and (b) UK.
Mrs Helen Grant
Golfing holidays in both the North West and the rest of the UK are promoted by VisitEngland and VisitBritain. Liverpool is using £62,500 from VisitEngland’s Growing Tourism Locally programme, funded through the Regional Growth fund, to promote ‘England’s Golf Coast’ in the golfing press, using the staging of the Open Championship at Royal Liverpool to encourage visits to the region. VisitBritain’s consumer website highlights golf courses across the whole of the UK including the Golf Coast, which also features in their Sport is GREAT pillar guide. In advance of the Ryder Cup in Gleneagles, VisitBritain has organised familiarisation trips taking American and European journalists to the course. Previous experience tells us that hosting the Ryder Cup is worth tens of millions of pounds to the UK and to the local economy.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2014-06-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many establishments deregistered for the purposes of carrying out marriages in (a) 2012, (b) 2013 and (c) 2014.
Karen Bradley
The General Register Office (GRO) for England and Wales is responsible for
maintaining the list of religious buildings registered for marriage.
The number of cancellations made for registered buildings for 2012 was 211,
2013 – 180 and for 2014 (up to 25 June) is 106.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fabian Hamilton on 2014-06-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what arrangements his Department has made with the US administration on control of the base at NSA Menwith Hill.
Mr Mark Francois
RAF Menwith Hill is made available to the United States under the terms of the NATO Status of Forces Agreement. The Ministry of Defence retains ownership of the base and operations are carried out with the full knowledge and consent of the UK Government.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fabian Hamilton on 2014-06-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what information his Department holds on the use of drones originating at (a) USAF Croughton, (b) RAF Marham, (c) NSA Menwith Hill and (d) RAF Waddington; and if he will make a statement.
Mr Mark Francois
The UK’s Reaper Remotely Piloted Air Systems (RPAS) are remotely operated from RAF Waddington. The US does not operate RPAS from the UK.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ms Diane Abbott on 2014-06-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to improve the quality and increase the uptake of foreign language training in schools; and if he will make a statement.
Elizabeth Truss
The new national curriculum introduces the teaching of a foreign language to key stage 2 (ages 7 to 11) from September 2014, which will increase the uptake of foreign languages in both primary and, over time, secondary schools. By starting languages earlier, pupils will have longer to develop their skills to a high level before continuing with language learning in secondary school. The English Baccalaureate is already encouraging more young people to take a language at GCSE level. Take up by key stage 4 pupils in England of a modern foreign language increased by over 20% between 2012 and 2013.
The Department for Education believes it is important to give teachers the flexibility to decide how to teach. We expect schools to identify the support that they need to prepare for the new curriculum, recognising that different schools will face different challenges.
We are allocating £350,000 this year to fund training on the new national curriculum for teachers of modern foreign languages in primary and secondary schools. We have also allocated some £1.9m to teaching schools to lead curriculum change across and within their teaching school alliances. 46 of the projects being supported involve languages.
The independent Expert Group, chaired by a leading primary headteacher, has published links to useful resources, which are hosted on the website of the Association for Language Learning. This is specifically to support the introduction of a compulsory foreign language at key stage 2. We are also making extensive use of social networking, including using high profile headteachers and others to raise the profile of the new curriculum, including for languages, through podcasts, webchats and blogs.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2014-06-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance he has given education authorities, free schools and academies on maternity pay for staff transferring schools during pregnancy.
Mr David Laws
Maternity Pay arrangements for most teachers transferring schools are set out in ‘Conditions of Service for School Teachers in England and Wales’ and wider employment legislation. Similar arrangements are determined by the ‘National Agreement on Pay and Conditions of Service’ for school support staff employed by local authorities. Academies and free schools are not bound by these arrangements but are free to adopt them for their staff if they choose to do so.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2014-06-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Answer of 19 October 2013, Official Report, column 235W, on billing, what the value was of duplicate supplier payments identified by his Department’s audit; and what proportion of such payments have since been recovered.
Elizabeth Truss
The Department’s spend recovery audit contractor has identified a small number of duplicate payments (excluding Executive Agencies). In 2012/13 there were 12 duplicate payments and in 2013/14 there was one. Any duplicate payments that have been identified and already recovered in previous years would not have been picked up in this audit.
The value of these duplicate payments is £110,527 over the five years audited. The audit was completed in April 2014 and we have recovered £40,256 (36%) of the total amount, with the remainder being subject to an ongoing recovery process by the contractor. We expect the contractor to pursue the remaining recovery action quickly.
In addition to the recovery work currently being undertaken, the Department has brought in other measures to minimise the risk of duplicate payments. From August 2013, arrangements for grants payments are dealt with by a central grants payment team. More recently, we have implemented the use of a unique reference number (URN) to reduce the risk of inaccurate grant payments and improve management information. The Department also ensures that finance guidance is updated as appropriate to ensure risks are minimised and we have regular discussions with our shared service provider about continuous improvements, which includes measures such as routine supplier data cleansing and clear protocols.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ivan Lewis on 2014-06-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the variation in average unit retail price of petrol and diesel in Northern Ireland and in the rest of the UK; and if he will make a statement.
Michael Fallon
No formal assessment has been made of the reasons for the variation in average unit retail prices of petrol and diesel in Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.
Retail fuel prices are determined by the demand and supply fundamentals in local areas. Prices will reflect the underlying cost of crude oil, the process to refine it and transport it so that it is available for consumption at the pump.
Variations in prices are determined by changes in supply and demand factors both for crude oil and for individual products.
On 5 September 2012, the OFT launched a call for information (CFI) to investigate claims that the UK petrol and diesel sectors are not working well. In their January 2013 report they concluded that:
“Overall, on the basis of the evidence collected, it appears that competition in the UK road fuels sector is working relatively effectively”.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2014-06-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will assess the chance of a possible increase in shark numbers in and near UK waters as a result of climate change.
George Eustice
Defra continues to collect data on the distribution and abundance of sharks through dedicated fisheries surveys. This and all other relevant information will contribute to future assessments of the state of UK seas and our progress towards achieving Good Environmental Status as required under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive. Such assessments will take into account climate change.