Category: Speeches

  • John Healey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    John Healey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Healey on 2016-04-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Higher Stamp Duty Land Tax rates announced in Budget 2016 will be levied on properties acquired by social landlords under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.

    Mr David Gauke

    The higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) for additional properties was introduced to try to make it fairer for people trying to get their foot on the property ladder. Under SDLT legislation, there are exemptions to the tax, including the higher rates, for certain acquisitions by registered social landlords.

  • Cheryl Gillan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Cheryl Gillan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cheryl Gillan on 2016-05-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether airlines are obliged to comply with the requirements of the EU Food Information for Consumers Regulations No. 1169/2011.

    George Eustice

    The Food Information for Consumers (FIC) Regulation (1169/2011) applies across the European Economic Area, including catering services that are provided by airlines when the departure takes place in a Member State. The requirements apply to packaged and unpackaged food served on airlines. In both cases information required by the regulations must be provided to the consumer, namely allergen information. Other food labelling rules may apply if departing from a non-EEA state.

  • Sarah Champion – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Sarah Champion – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Champion on 2016-07-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when guidance on Part 1 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 was sent to (a) Chief Police Officers in England and Wales, (b) the National Crime Agency, (c) HM Inspectorate of Constabularies and the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration.

    Sarah Newton

    Guidance on Part 1 was sent to Chief Officers of Police, the NCA, HMIC and other partners on 9 July 2015 as part of a broader Home Office circular on the Modern Slavery Act. The circular was not copied to the Independent Chief Inspector of Border and Immigration but is easily accessible on GOV.UK. All Border Force officers undergo mandatory training on identifying victims of modern slavery and have access to relevant guidance.

  • John Mc Nally – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    John Mc Nally – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will register the UK’s support for closing domestic ivory markets irrespective of the EU support of this position.

    Dr Thérèse Coffey

    At the Conference of Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) that took place from 24 September to 5 October, proposals on the closure of domestic ivory markets where they contribute to poaching or illegal trade were agreed by all Parties by consensus. The UK supported this outcome, negotiating on the basis of a common EU and Member State position.

    The agreement at CITES should form a strong basis for a global position on this important issue, which the UK will continue to support. It will not be revisited in the CITES context before the next Conference of Parties, which will take place in 2019. The UK will continue to comply with our EU treaty obligations, including our duty of sincere cooperation, until we formally leave the EU.

  • Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2015-11-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of research on the links between the risk of cancer and radiation spikes during the refuelling of nuclear power plants, whether nuclear power plants are currently required to report hourly or half-hourly radioactive emissions, and if not, whether they plan to require nuclear power plants to collect and publish hourly or half-hourly radioactive emissions statistics.

    Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

    Radioactive discharges from nuclear power plants are subject to permitting by the UK and devolved environmental agencies. Permitted discharge and notification levels are set out in individual site permits. These limits are set well within the levels required to comply with the public radiation dose constraints that have been set out in UK and devolved legislation in line with international standards.

    The environmental and food standards agencies jointly monitor actual levels of radioactivity in the environment and report annually in Radioactivity in Food and the Environment (RIFE). The results of this programme indicate that discharge levels from nuclear plants are well within the permitted limits.

  • Lord Warner – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Warner – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Warner on 2015-12-15.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what amount they plan to make available to local authorities to add to the Better Care Fund in each year from 2016–17 to 2019–20 inclusive, in the light of the commitment to make £1.5 billion available by 2019–20 set out in paragraph 2.124 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The annual breakdown of the £1.5 billion that will be made available to local authorities by 2019-20 to add to the Better Care Fund, as announced by the Chancellor in the 2015 Spending Review, has not yet been finalised. More detailed figures will be announced in due course.

  • Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what proposal the Government plans to put to the second UN open-ended working group on nuclear disarmament.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The UK and the four other Non-Proliferation Treaty Nuclear Weapons States voted against the Resolution “Taking forward multilateral nuclear disarmament negotiations” in the UN General Assembly First Committee which established an Open Ended Working Group. The Government believes that productive results can only be ensured through a consensus-based approach that takes into account the wider global security environment.

  • Baroness Hussein-Ece – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Baroness Hussein-Ece – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hussein-Ece on 2016-02-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to support the Manchester-based charity Broken Rainbow.

    Lord Bates

    The Government is committed to tackling domestic violence and abuse. Broken Rainbow plays an important role in supporting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender victims of domestic abuse, and the Home Office has informed Broken Rainbow that it will be renewing funding to support its helpline for 2016/17.

  • Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will estimate the proportion of the working population in Southampton which was working in small retail outlets over the last three years.

    Anna Soubry

    Official statistics are not sufficiently detailed to answer this question directly. However a rough estimate may be possible by combining sources.

    The ONS Business Registers and Employment Survey shows that the retail sector accounted for 10 – 11% of employment in Southampton in each year between 2012 and 2014.

    Furthermore BIS Business Population Estimates suggest that across the UK as a whole small firms (those below 50 employees) account for around 29% of employment in the retail sector.

    Applying this assumption we could estimate that small retailers accounted for around 3% of employment in Southampton in 2012-2014.

  • Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-04-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many MSI-DSL 30mm guns will be mounted on HMS Queen Elizabeth.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    In December 2003 a competition was launched to provide the Royal Navy with an improved defensive anti-surface warfare capability with the preference being for an automated 30mm gun system. A number of companies entered the competition, and the MSI ‘Seahawk’ system was eventually chosen on the basis of cost, capability and through life support. The MSI weapon system, now referred to as the Automated Small Calibre Gun (ASCG) System, was subsequently selected for fitting to HMS QUEEN ELIZABETH.

    Four ASCGs will be fitted on QUEEN ELIZABETH.