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  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-05-18.

    to ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to ensure that the new Education Cannot Wait fund will focus on the most marginalised children, including girls and children with disabilities.

    Baroness Verma

    The UK has played a leading role in the development of Education Cannot Wait – a fund for education in emergencies. A key focus for Education Cannot Wait will be on ensuring that marginalised children and young people are able to access a quality education. This includes refugees and internally displaced children, as well as children facing barriers to their education because of their gender, disability or other factors.

    This focus is reflected in the Fund’s indicative headline results, which commits to providing “Inclusive education [that] reaches the most marginalised children and young people in crises” with a target of “100% of supported education opportunities demonstrate increase in education for girls, disabled and those in remote locations”.

    The UK will continue to engage closely during Education Cannot Wait’s inception phase, to ensure that this commitment is fully reflected in its final design and results frameworks.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the aerial bombing of the Heiban locality in the South Khordofan and Blue Nile regions on 1 May, what assessment they have made of (1) the willingness, and (2) the capability, of the government of Sudan to distinguish between civilians and combatants.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The reported aerial bombardment of civilians in the Heiban locality of South Kordofan is appalling. Targeting of civilians would be a clear breach of International Humanitarian Law. We continue to make clear to the Government of Sudan that they have a responsibility to protect citizens, distinguish between combatants and non-combatants and uphold International Humanitarian Law.

    We consistently raise the importance of ending the conflicts in South Kordofan and Blue Nile directly with both the Government of Sudan and the Opposition; most recently, the UK Special Representative for Sudan and South Sudan raised this issue during his visit to Khartoum earlier this month. We continue to call on all sides to end the violence and believe that the Roadmap proposed by the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel represents a viable way forward.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the aerial bombing of the Heiban locality in the South Khordofan and Blue Nile regions on 1 May, what representations they have made to the government of Sudan about reducing conflict and bringing about a ceasefire.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The reported aerial bombardment of civilians in the Heiban locality of South Kordofan is appalling. Targeting of civilians would be a clear breach of International Humanitarian Law. We continue to make clear to the Government of Sudan that they have a responsibility to protect citizens, distinguish between combatants and non-combatants and uphold International Humanitarian Law.

    We consistently raise the importance of ending the conflicts in South Kordofan and Blue Nile directly with both the Government of Sudan and the Opposition; most recently, the UK Special Representative for Sudan and South Sudan raised this issue during his visit to Khartoum earlier this month. We continue to call on all sides to end the violence and believe that the Roadmap proposed by the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel represents a viable way forward.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the aerial bombing of the Heiban locality in the South Khordofan and Blue Nile regions on 1 May, what assessment they have made of whether the government of Sudan is now in breach of international humanitarian law.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The reported aerial bombardment of civilians in the Heiban locality of South Kordofan is appalling. Targeting of civilians would be a clear breach of International Humanitarian Law. We continue to make clear to the Government of Sudan that they have a responsibility to protect citizens, distinguish between combatants and non-combatants and uphold International Humanitarian Law.

    We consistently raise the importance of ending the conflicts in South Kordofan and Blue Nile directly with both the Government of Sudan and the Opposition; most recently, the UK Special Representative for Sudan and South Sudan raised this issue during his visit to Khartoum earlier this month. We continue to call on all sides to end the violence and believe that the Roadmap proposed by the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel represents a viable way forward.

  • Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is (1) the role, and (2) the annual cost, of presenting officers employed by the Department for Work and Pensions in relation to benefit appeals.

    Baroness Altmann

    The role of the Presenting Officer is to present the Department’s case effectively thereby helping the tribunal reach the right decisions and to gather feedback from the tribunal for its decision makers.

    The year to date costs for existing DWP Presenting Officers (to January 2016) is approx. £1.5m.

  • Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the annual saving in legal aid costs as a result of the withdrawal of legal and advice in relation to benefits appeals.

    Lord Faulks

    Legal aid for welfare benefits appeals is limited to advice and assistance on a point of law in the Upper Tribunal, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, including applications to the Upper Tribunal for permission to appeal. Legal aid is also available for judicial reviews of welfare benefit decisions and claims about welfare benefits relating to a contravention of the Equality Act 2010.

    Given the need to focus limited resource on the highest priority matters, legal aid is no longer generally available for other welfare benefits matters. Although many people rely on benefits, these cases primarily concern financial entitlement and, as such, do not raise such fundamental issues as cases concerning liberty or safety.

    The Impact Assessments published at the time LASPO received Royal Assent provided estimates for the reductions in legal aid spending for matters within the welfare benefits category, It was estimated that volumes would fall by 135,000 or 98% and spend by £25m or 97%. As part of the LASPO Post Implementation Review, the department will make an assessment of whether this reduction has been achieved. The impact assessments published alongside LASPO are available on the gov.uk website.

  • Lord Beith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beith on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will bring forward a draft bill to make provision for guardianship of the property of missing persons.

    Lord Faulks

    My Department is working to prepare the legislation necessary to create the new legal status of guardian of the property and affairs of the missing person. We will bring forward legislation when Parliamentary time allows.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Russia about alleged state interference in the affairs of the RBC newspaper and news service; and whether they will make public any responses received.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The British Government has not made any specific representations to the Russian Federation regarding the dismissal of three editors of Russian newspaper RBK on 13 May. However the Minister for Europe, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington), did raise our broader concerns about the suppression of civil society in Russia with his counterpart Deputy Minister Titov in December 2015. As set out in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Human Rights Report, the UK is deeply concerned about the reducing space for dissenting views and the increasing pressure on the media community in Russia.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what reports they have received concerning the welfare of refugees and migrants removed from Greece to Turkey, in the light of reports that some are being detained in camps at Düziçi and elsewhere, without access to legal advice or medical services.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Government takes very seriously any allegations of the inappropriate treatment of migrants or refugees, and we would urge any evidence substantiating the allegations to be made available to us and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). We note Turkey’s strong assurances about the treatment of migrants and refugees in its camps and removal centres. And also note the recent agreements reached betweenTurkey, the European Commission and the UNHCR, providing them with access to the Düziçi Camp and Kirklareli Removal Centre, and the UNHCR’s positive view following its initial visit. We will be following the outcome of future visits closely.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will ensure that central government procurement policies are used whenever possible to create jobs with training for people from disadvantaged areas or with individual handicaps.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The Public Contracts Regulations (2015) allow Contracting Authorities to reserve contracts for sheltered workshops and suppliers whose main aim is the social and professional integration of disabled or disadvantaged persons, or provide for such contracts to be performed in the context of sheltered employment programmes.