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  • Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Chalk on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what further steps she plans to take under the National Litter Strategy to reduce the number of bottles on beaches.

    Rory Stewart

    The National Litter Strategy will promote concerted, coordinated and effective actions to reduce litter and littering on land, which in turn should lead to a reduction in the amount of litter reaching local areas, including our beaches. To develop the National Litter Strategy we are working with a range of interested stakeholders, including representatives of the packaging industry.

    The Scottish Government is taking forward further work on the specific issue of a deposit return system for single-use drinks containers such as plastic bottles, and we will review any new evidence arising from this in the course of developing our own National Litter Strategy for England. However, in the meantime, we will continue to focus on improving existing waste collection and recycling systems for these items.

    In the UK, packaging producers who put more than 50 tonnes of packaging materials on the market a year, and have an annual turnover of more than £2 million, are required to recover and recycle a proportion of their packaging waste. As a result, most major bottle manufacturers and retailers who sell bottles pick up a financial obligation to recycle their packaging waste. More stringent recycling and recovery targets across the years led to a decrease in the proportion of bottles ending up in landfill and in litter. We will continue to focus on improving this system in future years.

    The UK Marine Strategy Part Three, published in December last year, sets out the actions we are taking to improve the marine environment. It covers measures that contribute to reducing sources of litter, including sources of beach litter, and to remove what has already reached our beaches. Actions related specifically to UK beaches include Defra-funded beach cleaning schemes on priority beaches.

  • Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Bridgen on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which EU schemes her Department administers; if she will estimate the annual cost of administering each such scheme in each of the (a) last and (b) next five years; if she will estimate the total value of each scheme in each of the (i) last and (ii) next five years; and for which schemes her Department has been subject to infraction proceedings from the EU Commission.

    George Eustice

    There are two EU funds under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) – the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development. Defra administers the CAP in England. The Devolved Administrations administer these EU schemes separately. The estimated value of these funds from 2011 to 2020 are set out in the table below, figures are for England.

    The current Multiple Financial Framework runs until 2020 so that is the last year where there is an estimate of the total value for both of the schemes.

    Year

    European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) €m

    European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) €m

    2011

    2,086

    447

    2012

    2,115

    469

    2013

    1,909

    531

    2014

    2,046

    442

    2015

    2,046

    333

    2016

    2,048

    590

    2017

    2,052

    590

    2018

    2,056

    590

    2019

    2,062

    590

    2020

    2,068

    591

    Decisions relating to the implementation of the CAP in England are integrated into numerous policy areas within the Department and the delivery of the CAP is carried out primarily by the Rural Payments Agency, Natural England and Forestry Commission, alongside other business. This arrangement allows the various objectives of the CAP to be delivered effectively. However, this integrated approach to delivery also makes it difficult to calculate the total annual cost of the CAP in isolation. This is something that was identified by the NAO in its recent report ‘Early Development of the CAP Delivery Programme’, and the Department is currently considering how to respond to this recommendation.

    In relation to these two schemes the Department has not been subject to any infraction proceedings from the EU in the last five years.

  • Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Bridgen on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many farmers have been subject to penalties for non-compliance with Single Farm Payment Scheme requirements in each of the last five years; and what the total value of those penalties was.

    George Eustice

    The volume of penalties, plus their value for Single Payment Scheme claims, for the last five years of the scheme are below.

    We have not yet finalised information for the 2015 Basic Payment Scheme.

    Scheme Year

    Number of Claimants In Breach

    Value €

    2014

    2,703

    2,489,438

    2013

    2,134

    2,781,039

    2012

    1,574

    1,704,085

    2011

    1,722

    2,594,023

    2010

    1,493

    2,329,495
  • Tommy Sheppard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tommy Sheppard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tommy Sheppard on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that UK businesses that operate in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories are aware of the Overseas Business Risk guidance related to Israel.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s Overseas Business Risk (OBR) service covers 106 different countries. This is voluntary guidance to British businesses, available free of charge on GOV.UK. The guidance is regularly reviewed and updated if necessary. The OBR service is routinely promoted as part of officials’ outreach work with businesses and trade promotion agencies and partners. It is the decision of an individual or company whether to operate in settlements in the Occupied Territories, but the British Government would neither encourage nor support such activity.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether equipment provided by the UK has been used to facilitate the delivery of cluster munitions by the Saudi Arabian forces in the Yemen conflict.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We are aware of reports of the alleged use of Cluster Munitions by the Coalition in Yemen. We have raised this issue with the Saudi Arabian authorities and, in line with our obligations under the Convention on Cluster Munitions, continue to encourage Saudi Arabia, as a non-party to the Convention, to accede to it.

  • Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Bridgen on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what total amount of expenses was claimed by officials working for the UK Permanent Representation to the EU in each of the last five years.

    Mr David Lidington

    We cannot provide a figure for the total amount of expenses claimed by officials working for the UK Permanent Representation to the EU (UKRep) in each of the last five years, except at disproportionate cost. Expense claims made by UKRep officials are incorporated into budgets that are aggregated across the Government’s Brussels platform as a whole, which consists of UKRep, the British Embassy in Belgium, including UKTI and Consular operations, the UK Joint Delegation to NATO and Corporate Services Benelux.

  • Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Bridgen on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many civil servants and diplomats form part of the UK Permanent Representation to the EU; how many such officials there were in each pay band in each of the last five years; and what the total staffing cost of UKREP was in 2015-16.

    Mr David Lidington

    UKRep includes staff from a number of different Government Departments. The number of staff employed by UKRep varies throughout the year, depending on changing requirements at the Representation. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) currently has 122 full time posts at UKRep, both UK based and Locally Engaged. Details of the current senior team at UKRep can be found here https://www.gov.uk/government/world/organisations/uk-representation-to-the-eu/about/our-governance .

    A breakdown of officials by pay band for the last five years could not be obtained without incurring a disproportionate cost; however FCO’s annual report and accounts for each financial year, including an overview of salary costs, can be found on GOV.UK .

  • Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Bridgen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Bridgen on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the total cost was of maintaining the UK Permanent Representation to the EU in each of the last five years.

    Mr David Lidington

    We cannot provide a figure for the total cost of maintaining the UK Permanent Representation to the EU (UKRep) in each of the last five years, except at disproportionate cost.

    The budgets involved are aggregated in different ways, normally across HMG’s Brussels platform as a whole, which consists of UKRep, the British Embassy in Belgium, including UKTI and Consular operations, the UK Joint Delegation to NATO and Corporate Services Benelux.

    Administrative resource spend, which includes, but is not limited to, Locally Engaged staff salaries, travel costs, telecoms, catering and entertainment and IT, is shared across the Brussels platform and difficult to disaggregate. Facilities management costs (eg security, reception, cleaning) are also shared across the Brussels platform and difficult to disaggregate. The rent spent on the offices which house UKRep and the British Embassy is aggregated. Salaries and allowances paid to UK-based staff working at UKRep are captured in further separate budgets, and would involve significant resource to disaggregate.

  • Tommy Sheppard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tommy Sheppard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tommy Sheppard on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with G4S on that company’s adherence to the terms of the (a) Fourth Geneva Convention and (b) UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights related to the detention of Palestinian prisoners in Israel.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The UK considers Palestinians arrested in the OPTs and detained in Israel as contrary to Article 76 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. The UK Government encourages British companies to show respect for human rights in their operations in the UK and internationally and we have made this clear in meetings with G4S.

  • Helen Goodman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Helen Goodman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department takes to ensure claims for diplomatic immunity are authentic.

    James Duddridge

    Under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations 1961 the sending State must make certain that the agrément of the receiving State has been given for the person it proposes to accredit as its head of mission (Article 4). The UK also requires sending States to submit the names of military, naval and air attaches for approval (Article 7). Diplomatic missions are further required to notify the receiving State of the arrival of all members of the mission and their accompanying family members (Article 10). If a foreign national resident in the UK claimed diplomatic status, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) would check whether the person’s name was on its database of foreign diplomats and their families, as notified to the FCO by the sending State. As necessary, the FCO would also seek confirmation from the relevant diplomatic mission.