UKPOL.CO.UK

Category: Speeches

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress has been made on the Government’s plans to commemorate (a) the First World War and (b) the Battle of the Somme.

    Tracey Crouch

    Since the Prime Minister set out plans for the Centenary in October 2012 the Government has delivered highly successful commemorative events for the start of the First World War and the Gallipoli Campaign.

    In May 2016, commemorative events will be held for the Battle of Jutland, and in July 2016, we will mark the centenary of the Battle of the Somme by holding national events at the Thiepval Memorial in France, at Manchester Cathedral, and at Heaton Park. In addition, a national vigil will be held at Westminster Abbey, and there will also be vigils in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

    Other centenary activities such as the UK Tour of the “poppies” and the national repair and conservation of War memorials also continue, more details can be found at

    https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/first-world-war-centenary

    “

  • Bob Blackman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Bob Blackman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Blackman on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of policing on university campuses following the violent protests and criminal damage by demonstrators at an Israel Society event at King’s College London last week.

    Mike Penning

    The operational policing of protests and demonstrations are principally a matter for Chief Officers of each force in England and Wales.

    Peaceful protest is a vital part of a democratic society. It is a long-standing tradition in this country that people are free to gather together and to demonstrate their views. However, like all members of the public, protesters are subject to the law. Should individuals cross the boundary into criminal acts including public order offences, criminal damage, hate crime offences or violent behaviour, the police have a range of powers to take action.

  • Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he has taken to ensure that local authorities meet their obligation under the National Planning Policy Framework to meet the housing needs of disabled people requiring wheelchair accessible homes.

    Brandon Lewis

    Local authorities are best placed to understand the housing needs in their area. We expect them to work closely with key partners and their local communities in deciding what type of housing is needed.

    National policy sets out clearly the need for local authorities to plan for the housing needs of all members of the community and that planning should encourage accessibility. The introduction of optional requirements for accessibility in the Building Regulations provides local authorities with the tools needed to ensure that new homes are accessible and that in particular the needs of disabled people are met.

    Local authorities are held accountable for their housing delivery via their Local Plans which are tested by local independent planning inspectors and are scrutinised via yearly Authority Monitoring reports which set out progress on delivery against Local Plan targets. In addition local authorities must determine individual decisions in line with the development plan and other material considerations, such as the National Planning Policy Framework and having regard to viability considerations.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-03-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 2 March 2016 to Question 27886, if he will publish a list of the planning appeals which were recovered in the last 12 months.

    Brandon Lewis

    Attached is a table which shows all planning appeals which have been recovered in the last 12 months.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-04-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 13 July 2016 to Question 6002, when the liaison personnel in Saudi coalition headquarters were first deployed; how many liaison personnel worked in those headquarters between March 2015 and January 2016; what rules of engagement or memorandum of understanding governs the role of those personnel; and whether any of those personnel have a role in the commission of inquiry announced by the Saudi coalition on 31 January 2016.

    Michael Fallon

    The Liaison Officers were first deployed in May 2015. We do not discuss specific numbers for operational reasons. As Liaison Officers they are not expected to be in a situation where they would require Rules of Engagement nor provide advice to the Saudi investigatory committee.

  • Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2016-06-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information his Department holds on the average waiting time between cancer diagnosis and treatment in each of the last 10 years.

    Jane Ellison

    The Department does not hold data on the average waiting time between cancer diagnosis and treatment. NHS England collects data on cancer waiting times and these data are published on their website. The data comprise of organisational performance against operational standards that support waiting time commitments laid out in the NHS Constitution. These include the standard that 96% of patients should begin first definitive treatment for all cancers within a maximum of 31 days from diagnosis.

    A national time series can be found at the link below:

    https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2015/02/Cancer-Waiting-Times-National-Time-Series-Oct-2009-Mar-2016-Provider-based.xlsx

    “

  • Alison McGovern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Alison McGovern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison McGovern on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how long the average anticipated response time is for a review of a driving licence due to medical reasons.

    Andrew Jones

    The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) deals with more than 600,000 medical driver licensing applications annually. The length of time taken to deal with an individual application depends on the medical condition and whether further information is required from medical professionals.

    Between April 2016 and the end of August 2016, the average time taken for a licensing decision to be made was 38 working days. The average time for the period April 2015 to March 2016 was 53 working days.

  • Baroness Wolf of Dulwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Wolf of Dulwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Wolf of Dulwich on 2016-10-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many students received loans from the Student Loans Company for the fees for equivalent level qualifications at degree or sub-degree level in engineering, technology and computer science in 2015–16.

    Viscount Younger of Leckie

    The first release of statistics covering English tuition fee loans to part-time students in the academic year 2015/16 will be on 30 November 2016 in the Statistical First Release ‘Student Support for Higher Education in England’.

  • Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-10-29.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will ensure that save-as-you-earn and share incentive plan savings limits are increased in line with inflation on an annual basis.

    Mr David Gauke

    The tax-advantaged Save As You Earn (SAYE) and Share Incentive Plan (SIP) limits were significantly increased from April 2014. The increases the Government have made are reasonable, given the average monthly SAYE savings and the value of awards currently made to employees under SIP, and they represent the best use of resources. The Government will continue to keep the SAYE and SIP limits under review.

    In addition to increasing the SAYE and SIP limits, the rules of the schemes were substantially reviewed and simplified following the recommendations made by the Office of Tax Simplification in March 2012. Last year, the requirement that these schemes must be approved by HM Revenue and Customs to qualify for favourable tax treatment was replaced by self-certification. Coupled with other changes to simplify some technical aspects of the rules, this will make these schemes more attractive to businesses and employees.

    No data is collected and no estimates are made of the income levels of the participants in SAYE schemes.

    Permitting private equity backed companies to offer all-employee tax advantaged schemes would be likely to involve significant changes to the rules of the schemes, and there would be a number of other factors to consider carefully, including the increased cost and complexity of any extension.

  • Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2015-11-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to page 31 of the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015, what his Department’s planning assumptions are for the number of vessels of the new class of general purpose frigates which his Department plans to procure.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The number of general purpose frigates to be procured through the programme has yet to be determined. Work on the programme will be scoped initially during the concept study outlined in the White Paper National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 (Cmd 9161).