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  • Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-06-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much his Department has spent on legal costs incurred appealing against decisions by the Information Commissioner requiring the release of information about the universal credit programme since 2011.

    Esther McVey

    The Department’s records relating to legal costs do not distinguish between actions which the Department has brought and actions which it has defended or the stage of legal proceedings in respect of which each invoice for legal representation is paid. Disaggregating the data would take the costs of responding to the question over the disproportionate cost threshold.

  • Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-06-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much his Department spent on correspondence with recipients of (a) jobseeker’s allowance and (b) employment and support allowance in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012 and (iv) 2013.

    Esther McVey

    The information requested is not available.

  • Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-06-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what financial assistance his Department has provided to shooting organisations to help them prepare for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

    Mrs Helen Grant

    British Shooting was awarded £153,000 from Sport England’s Commonwealth Games Glasgow 2014 medal support programme.

  • Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-06-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many people are employed in the arms industry in the UK.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Ministry of Defence no longer compiles national or regional defence industry employment statistics as they do not directly support policy-making or operations.

  • Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-06-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Royal Air Force armourers have died from leukaemia in each of the last five years.

    Anna Soubry

    From 1 January 2009 to 31 December 2013 (the last full year for which data is available), no RAF Armourer personnel have died as a result of leukaemia.

  • Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-06-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assistance his Department gives to farmers and landowners in controlling the number of jays which predate smaller song birds.

    George Eustice

    All wild birds are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. However, licences allow for the control of birds in some circumstances. In England, general licences are issued by Natural England permitting users to kill or take jays for several purposes. These include conserving wild birds and preventing serious damage to crops. They may be relied on by landowners and other authorised persons as long as they are satisfied they have met the conditions of the licence.

  • Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-06-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to improve the habitat and increase the number of (a) hedgehogs and (b) owls.

    George Eustice

    Agri-environment schemes, such as Environmental Stewardship, are the principal means of improving habitats and the wider environment on farmland in England. Farmers receive funding to manage the cropped environment and provide additional habitats on their farms for birds and other wildlife. Under work to develop the implementation plan for Biodiversity 2020 (the Government’s strategy for England’s wildlife and ecosystem services) Natural England has commissioned work to review all Section 41 species. This is to identify priorities for action and to determine what those actions should be. The hedgehog is being considered within this context by the Mammal Taxon Group, which comprises specialist organisations, led by Natural England.

    Activities of benefit to owls, currently funded by Environmental Stewardship, include the establishment of grassy margins and buffer strips, and the management of field corners. These can provide additional habitat for prey species such as small mammals. The restoration of traditional farm buildings can also provide both shelter and nesting sites along with the provision of nest boxes.

  • Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-06-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number of hedgehogs in the UK in each of the last three years.

    George Eustice

    No estimates of hedgehog populations have been made by Defra in the last three years. However, a report ‘The State of Britain’s Hedgehogs’ was published in 2011 by the British Hedgehog Preservation Society and the People’s Trust for Endangered Species. It estimates that hedgehog numbers were approximately 1.5 million in 1995. The report is available online at:

    www.ptes.org/files/1428_sobh2011lowres.pdf

    “

  • Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-06-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) rural festivals and (b) country sports events have been held in the UK in each of the last five years.

    Dan Rogerson

    Defra does not hold this information.

  • Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Jim Shannon – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2014-06-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what support his Department gives to landowners to enable regeneration of land through the burning of heather and moorland.

    George Eustice

    The Department does not support landowners in England to regenerate land through the burning of heather and moorland. However, various agri-environment schemes provide financial support for the positive environmental management of the uplands, including moorland.