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  • Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to promote operational and headquarters experience in the UN for career development in the armed forces and police.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Multinational relationships are key to the security of the UK. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) recognises and values the experience that military personnel gain from deployments and postings to multinational operations and Headquarters, including the UN. This has been demonstrated by the increase in the number of UN Staff Officer posts filled by the UK in recent years and the UK’s Strategic Defence and Security Review commitment to double the number of troops deployed to UN Peace Operations.

    Career development in the Armed Forces is based on a range of factors including such multinational deployments and postings. Relevant experience and performance from deployment to UN operations and headquarters would form part of an individual’s career assessment. Requirements for such deployments and postings are initiated and developed centrally by the MoD then apportioned to the Single Services to fill.

    The UK also recognises the benefits of international deployments to the police service. Through the National Police Chiefs’ Council we are encouraging police forces to consider releasing officers to undertake international roles. The newly-established Joint International Policing Hub will consider ways of incorporating international deployments into careers in the police service.

  • Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of their plans to make all schools convert to academy status, what will be the status of the National Curriculum after those conversions.

    Lord Nash

    In 2014, we introduced a new, more ambitious national curriculum which was developed to reflect the views of subject experts and teachers and the findings of international best practice comparisons.

    An academised system means that the national curriculum will become a benchmark. It will serve an important role in setting out the level of knowledge-based, ambitious, academically rigorous education which every child should experience.

    If autonomous academies or multi-academy trusts (MATs) wish to deliver the national curriculum in their schools, they can do so confidently. We want academies to use their freedom to innovate and build more stretching curricula to meet the needs of their pupils or their local area or the particular ethos of the school.

  • Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness King of Bow on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they plan to publish the outcome of their review of local council tax support schemes.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The independent review of Local Council Tax Support schemes has now concluded and its final report was published on GOV.UK on 8 April. The report is available (attached) here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-council-tax-support-schemes-an-independent-review.

    A copy of the report has been placed in the House Library

    “

  • Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness King of Bow on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 25 February (HL6212), how many organisations and individuals submitted responses to their review of local council tax support schemes, and whether they will place a list of those submissions in the Library of the House.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    Appendix six of the final report of the independent review of Local Council Tax Support schemes (attached) contains details of the numbers of responses received to its public call for evidence. Appendices two, four and seven provide further information on which stakeholders were consulted by the Chair. A copy of the report, including this information, has been placed in the House Library, and the report is also available on GOV.UK.

  • Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness King of Bow on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have notified full-time carers affected by the benefit cap of their decision to exempt such claimants following the High Court judgment against the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.

    Lord Freud

    We will be writing to claimants potentially affected by the planned changes to the benefit cap in the coming months, ahead of the launch of the new benefit cap levels from the Autumn. These notifications will include details of the forthcoming exemptions. We are also working with stakeholder organisations to support them to share information with affected carers.

  • Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness King of Bow on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to instruct local authorities to ensure that Discretionary Housing Payments are awarded to full-time carers affected by the benefit cap until their exemptions are implemented.

    Lord Freud

    It is important that local authorities are allowed to use their discretion to ensure Discretionary Housing Payments are awarded to those who most require assistance based on local circumstances. We have, however, amended the Discretionary Housing Payments Local Authority Good Practice Guide to reflect that those entitled to Carer’s Allowance or Universal Credit including the carer element should be considered as a priority group for whom Discretionary Housing Payments are specifically aimed.

  • Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness King of Bow on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the one-year post-implementation review of the Taking Control of Goods Regulations 2013, as set out in the Explanatory Memorandum to those Regulations, has been completed, and if so, whether a copy will be placed in the Library of the House.

    Lord Faulks

    Work to review the enforcement reforms introduced in April 2014 is ongoing.

  • Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness King of Bow on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to ask the Social Housing Regulator to request data from the Circle Housing Group about the performance of Kier Gas in repairing or replacing faulty boilers in each week since the Group downgraded Kier Gas’s governance rating.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    I refer the Noble Lady to my previous answer to her on 8 December (HL4002). The Social Housing Regulator is statutorily independent. The Department for Communities and Local Government cannot therefore direct the Regulator on this matter.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what response they have made to the call by Syria Solidarity UK and others for air drops of aid to the people of the town of Daraya.

    Baroness Verma

    Across Syria, Assad and other parties to the conflict are wilfully impeding humanitarian access on a day-by-day basis. It is unacceptable and illegal to use starvation as a weapon of war. The UK has given support to the UN and international NGOs since the start of the conflict to deliver aid to these areas and are pushing for humanitarian access to be granted to all besieged and hard to reach places in Syria through the International Syria Support Group Humanitarian taskforce and our position in the UN Security Council.

    The United Nations has been unable to deliver assistance to the 4,000 people besieged by the Syrian Regime in Daraya since November 2012, despite repeated requests for permission. The UN report that humanitarian conditions there are dire and it stands ready to deliver assistance as soon as access is granted by the Syrian regime. The UN has not ruled out air drops to locations in Syria, but aid delivered by road, by UN agencies and by others who know the situation on the ground, and who can ensure it gets to those who need it most, remains the best way of getting help through. Daraya is only a few minutes’ drive from UN warehouses in Damascus.

  • Baroness Kramer – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Baroness Kramer – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kramer on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people paid capital gains tax on personal possessions in each of the last five years, and what was the total amount of tax paid.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    Information is not available on the number of people paying Capital Gains Tax on specific types of possession, or the total amount of tax paid on gains of specific type of possession. Capital Gains Tax payments are not separated into personal possessions. However, the Government publishes information about total amount of Capital Gains Tax paid each year and the total numbers of individuals accruing liabilities.