The below Parliamentary question was asked by Owen Smith on 2016-04-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he intends to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Pontypridd dated 28 March 2016 on the Government’s priorities for social security.
Justin Tomlinson
The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the Member for Preseli Pembrokeshire (Mr Crabbe), replied on 03 May 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2016-04-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average distance is travelled by residents of Hove for face-to-face personal independence payment assessments.
Justin Tomlinson
Atos Healthcare does not hold or retain information about customer journey times to attend assessments. Should a customer foresee a problem with travelling to their assessment they are asked to contact Atos to discuss their circumstances.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions he has had with the (a) Law Society and (b) other representatives of the legal profession on the issuing of seven day notices of legal proceedings at the same time as invoices for payment to consumers.
Mr Shailesh Vara
Ministers at the Ministry of Justice have had no such discussions with the Law Society or other representatives of the legal profession on this issue.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Adam Afriyie on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent assessment he has made of the cyber security implications of driverless cars.
Anna Soubry
Government recognises that vehicle security is a priority to ensure the safety and security of the public and their data.
Government believes connected and autonomous vehicles should be “secure by design” and handle data appropriately. We are working closely with industry to achieve these aims as part of a wider programme of activity to ensure that the significant opportunities of these technologies can be realised safely and securely.
Connected technologies present cyber security challenges across a range of sectors. Cyber security has been identified as a key priority in the latest National Security Strategy. The Government has announced the formation of a National Cyber Security Centre, which will bring together the UK’s cyber expertise from different parts of Government into one organisation. The Government will also publish a new National Cyber Security Strategy later this year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rob Marris on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answers of 25 February 2016 to Questions 27493 and 27494, and with reference to Article 29 of the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, what the evidential basis is for the Government’s conclusion that the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership does not automatically apply to British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
Anna Soubry
The Government’s position, set out in the answers to Questions 27493 and 27494, is based on the wording of the treaties (Article 52 of the Treaty on European Union, Article 355 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and the 1972 Treaty of Accession of Denmark, Ireland and the UK to the European Economic Community) and the longstanding practice of the UK.
Article 29 of the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods is not relevant to the status of British Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. Article 29 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties provides that “Unless a different intention appears from the treaty or is otherwise established, a treaty is binding upon each party in respect of its entire territory.” The British Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies are not part of the UK, and the UK has consistently adopted the position that treaties made by the UK do not extend to British Overseas Territories or the Crown Dependencies, unless this is done expressly. The first expression of this position was set out in the “Bevin Despatch” (Foreign Office Circular 118, 16 October 1950).
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rob Marris on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answers of 25 February 2016 to Questions 27493 and 27494, and with reference to Article 29 of the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, what the evidential basis is for the Government’s conclusion that the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement does not automatically apply to British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
Anna Soubry
The Government’s position, set out in the answers to Questions 27493 and 27494, is based on the wording of the treaties (Article 52 of the Treaty on European Union, Article 355 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and the 1972 Treaty of Accession of Denmark, Ireland and the UK to the European Economic Community) and the longstanding practice of the UK.
Article 29 of the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods is not relevant to the status of British Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. Article 29 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties provides that “Unless a different intention appears from the treaty or is otherwise established, a treaty is binding upon each party in respect of its entire territory.” The British Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies are not part of the UK, and the UK has consistently adopted the position that treaties made by the UK do not extend to British Overseas Territories or the Crown Dependencies, unless this is done expressly. The first expression of this position was set out in the “Bevin Despatch” (Foreign Office Circular 118, 16 October 1950).
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether his Department has produced an implementation plan for the Sustainable Development Goals.
Anna Soubry
The Government intends to produce a report in due course that will set out how the UK is contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much EU (a) 7th Framework Programme and (b) Horizon 2020 funding has been provided to (i) universities, (ii) other research institutions and (iii) small businesses in the UK in each of the last five years.
Joseph Johnson
The figures requested are set out below. These reflect the full value of grant agreements signed in each calendar year, not the money received in that year.
Higher and Secondary Education Organisations (HES) agreed funding (€):
|
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
|
|
FP7 |
832,679,583 |
923,451,655 |
1,017,766,046 |
390,441,742 |
22,102,754 |
|
Horizon 2020 |
178,789,606 |
910,814,167 |
Non-profit Research organisations (REC) agreed funding (€):
|
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
|
|
FP7 |
109,612,016 |
78,523,761 |
107,290,576 |
38,249,216 |
1,469,761 |
|
Horizon 2020 |
48,957,471 |
140,977,361 |
All Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SME) agreed funding (€):
|
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
|
|
FP7 |
127,491,096 |
180,348,365 |
229,312,029 |
39,929,247 |
241,625 |
|
Horizon 2020 |
49,215,444 |
219,693,279 |
Please note that the SME figures may include some HES or REC organisations.
The variation in the figures across the years in part reflects the fact that calls are competitively bid for and vary considerably in the amount of funding available; and in part the fact that the FP7 budget was back-loaded, with increasing amounts of money available to award as grants in the final two years of the programme (2012-2013). In contrast, relatively few grants were awarded in the first year of Horizon 2020 (2014), which thereafter is due to run with annual budgets larger than those available to FP7.
Overall, the UK was the second biggest recipient of EU research funding under FP7, and remains so under Horizon 2020.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps the Government is taking to promote trade between the UK and other Commonwealth countries.
Anna Soubry
Her Majesty’s Government is represented across the Commonwealth and, as one of its priorities, is committed to helping UK business succeed overseas. UK Trade & Investment itself is represented in around half of all Commonwealth countries. There is therefore a range of services that business can benefit from, dependent on the scale of the opportunities in each country.
My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has recently made further appointments of designated Trade Envoys to Commonwealth countries which now include; Bangladesh, Ghana, Mozambique, Brunei, Malaysia, Nigeria, Canada, Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many vehicles were acquired under the 2009-10 vehicle scrappage scheme; and how many of those vehicles had not been disposed of on the latest date for which figures are available.
Anna Soubry
Under the 2009 Vehicle Scrappage Scheme (VSS) claims were made for 392227 vehicles. A breakdown of that figure by make and model is available on our website, gov.uk. In order for a claim to be made under the VSS, a Certificate of Destruction (CoD), issued by an Authorised Treatment Facility (ATF) for the old vehicle had to be provided by the car dealer to the manufacturer. Beyond the CoD, the arrangements covering disposal of the old vehicle, and any associated costs, sat outside the scheme. The physical treatment chain was not a condition of the Scheme and therefore the Department does not hold any information relating to this. The Environment Agency is the responsible authority for compliance with the permit requirements for Authorised Treatment Facilities (ATF).