Category: Speeches

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

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-07-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government why fees in the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal are to be increased, and what percentage of requests for a waiver of such fees were refused in each quarter since the beginning of 2015 to date.

    Lord Keen of Elie

    The financial challenges faced by the Government means taking tough decisions on reducing public spending across a wide range of services.

    That is why the Government consulted on proposals to increase fees in asylum and immigration proceedings.

    Breaking down the data requested by quarter would incur disproportionate costs.

  • George Howarth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    George Howarth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by George Howarth on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the introduction of tolls on the Mersey Gateway and Silver Jubilee bridges; and whether a decision has been taken on discounts for use of those bridges for local businesses and residents.

    Andrew Jones

    The Secretary of State has not discussed this issue with the Chancellor of the Exchequer. A final decision on whether to fund further discounts to users of the bridges has yet to be taken.

  • Tom Brake – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Tom Brake – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2015-10-30.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission on transferring to that Commission responsibility for the maintenance of military graves currently maintained by his Department.

    Mark Lancaster

    Discussions between Ministry Of Defence (MOD) and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) are continuing regarding the transfer of maintenance responsibility for the graves of military personnel buried in the UK since 1948.

    Annual costs for the maintenance of each grave for which MOD is responsible are estimated to be between £65 and £205 depending on the location and condition of the grave. The MOD’s annual grant to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in respect of the graves they maintain is in excess of £47 million.

  • 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 30 of the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015, what estimate he has made of the cost of each of the new logistic ships.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 1 December 2015 to Question 17447 to the hon. Member for Glasgow South West (Chris Stephens).

    “

  • Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Fabricant on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what progress the Government has made on the return of the Prince of Wales’ regalia to Wales.

    Stephen Crabb

    I fully support the campaign to return His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales’ regalia to Wales, in this the 40th Anniversary Year of the Prince’s Trust. There has been a lot of interest in this for a number of years and I welcome the agreement of HM the Queen for the symbolic regalia to be displayed in Llandovery.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many trained dogs have been injured while working in prisons in each of the last five years.

    Andrew Selous

    Information relating to injuries sustained by dogs working in prisons is not centrally collated and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of whether the bus service operators grant is used by bus operators to keep fares down.

    Andrew Jones

    We have been reviewing the Bus Service Operators Grant scheme in recent years with a view to improving its effectiveness in supporting bus services. In their assessment of the impact of any changes in policy associated with the Bus Service Operators’ Grant, departmental economists normally assume operators pass subsidy received on to passengers 50% through lower fares and 50% through increased service levels. Under these assumptions, they estimate that BSOG has the impact of keeping fares 3% lower than they would be in its absence in England outside of London.

  • Debbie Abrahams – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Debbie Abrahams – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Debbie Abrahams on 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, further to the Government response to the consultation on aids and appliances and the daily living component of personal independence payment, Cm 9194, what modelling his Department undertook to assess how the changes proposed in that consultation will affect existing claimants.

    Justin Tomlinson

    As confirmed by my right honourable friend the Secretary of State in his statement to the House on 21 March, the proposed changes to PIP will not be going ahead.

    We spend around £50bn every year on benefits alone to support people with disabilities or health conditions, with spending on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Disability Living Allowance (DLA) having increased by more than £3 billion since 2010. The government is committed to talking to disabled people, their representatives, healthcare professionals and employers to ensure the welfare system works better with the health and social care systems and provides help and support to those who need it most.

  • Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne Main on 2016-04-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many infraction proceedings the EU has initiated against his Department in each of the last 10 years; what the reasons were for each such proceeding being undertaken; and what the outcome was of each such proceeding.

    Mr David Lidington

    The information requested is publicly available on the website of the European Commission where the infringement cases for each member state can be found. This includes the infringement and the decision. These records go back to 2002 and can be found here: http://ec.europa.eu/atwork/applying-eu-law/infringements-proceedings/infringement_decisions/?lang_code=en

  • Lord Mendelsohn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Lord Mendelsohn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mendelsohn on 2016-06-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the Institute of Director’s call in February for a broadband target of 10 gigabits a second by 2030.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The Government welcomes the Institute of Directors’ Ultrafast Britain: Broadband Report published in February and is committed to working with the market to deliver a digital infrastructure that meets the current and future needs for high speeds, as well as security and resilience. The Government will be setting out its plans for realising this in its upcoming Digital Strategy.