Category: Speeches

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-04-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect of the introduction of the new national living wage on carers who will lose their eligibility for the carer’s allowance for working 16 hours per week.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The primary purpose of Carer’s Allowance is to provide a measure of financial support and recognition for people who give up the opportunity of full-time employment in order to provide regular and substantial care for a severely disabled person. It is not, and was never intended to be, a carer’s wage or a payment for the services of caring, nor is it intended to replace lost or forgone earnings in their entirety.

    The earnings limit for Carer’s Allowance is a net figure which is the figure left once income tax, National Insurance contributions and half of any contributions to an occupational or personal pension are deducted from earnings. There are also a number of other deductions which can be made that mean that people can earn significantly more than £110 per week and still be eligible for Carer’s Allowance.

    The Carer’s Allowance earnings limit is not linked to the number of hours worked. Instead, it is set at a level that aims to encourage those who give up full time work in order to undertake caring responsibilities to maintain a link with the labour market through part time work.

    Whilst the Government does not link the earnings limit to any other particular factor (including the National Living Wage), we do keep it under regular review and increase it when it is warranted and affordable, and this will continue to be our approach. Most recently in April 2015 the earnings limit was increased by 8% to £110, far outstripping the general increase in earnings.

    For those carers working around 16 hours a week on a low income and receiving Working Tax Credit, Carer’s Allowance is taken fully into account as income. That means that any loss in Carer’s Allowance is likely to be offset by an increase in Working Tax Credit, and this is one of the changes of circumstances that results in an immediate change to Tax Credits. Going forward the earnings taper in Universal Credit will help ensure that people are always better off in work.

  • Hywel Williams – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hywel Williams – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hywel Williams on 2016-05-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent reports he has received on allegations of torture and threats of physical and sexual violence against Baha’is sentenced to prison terms in Golestan province, Iran.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We consistently raise our concerns about the treatment of the Baha’i community in Iran with the Iranian Government. We call on Iran to cease harassment of all religious minorities and to fulfil its international and domestic obligations to allow freedom of religion to all Iranians.

  • Nia Griffith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Nia Griffith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nia Griffith on 2016-07-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to make additional funding available to the Welsh Health Service as a result of the decision to offer increased annual payments to victims of contaminated blood.

    Mr David Gauke

    Health functions have been devolved to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. This means responsibility for the infected blood payment schemes is a matter for those devolved administrations. The proposals for reform, set out in the government’s consultation response document published July 13, are for England only.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to promote the use of construction equipment manufactured in the UK.

    Jesse Norman

    Construction equipment is a key sector for the UK economy, with revenues in excess of £11bn from 1500 UK companies employing 40000 people. Most of the equipment used on construction sites is provided by plant hire companies directly to the contractor or sub-contractor on a project by project basis. It is not something that either the client or the contractor generally purchases directly. That is why we believe that the most important thing the Government can do to promote the use of construction equipment manufactured in the UK is by working with the sector to improve its competitiveness and productivity. The Department also works closely with the Department for International Trade to help showcase the UK industry globally to help ensure it remains an important and growing part of the UK’s manufacturing footprint.

    The construction equipment sector is represented on the Automotive Council and has played an important role in setting the direction and long-term strategic priorities for the industry. A number of the sector’s manufacturers and their suppliers are involved in key innovation and development projects and programmes supported and funded by the Advanced Propulsion Centre and Innovate UK. The Government has also supported the UK industry through schemes such as the Regional Growth Fund and the Advanced Manufacturing Supply Chain Initiative (AMSCI).

  • Julian Knight – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Julian Knight – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will change planning procedures for local authorities to speed up the construction of new affordable homes to buy.

    Brandon Lewis

    The Government has committed, through the Productivity Plan, to introduce a dispute resolution mechanism to speed up section 106 negotiations to enable housing and other development to be built more quickly. We intend to do this through the Housing and Planning Bill.

  • Paul Farrelly – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Paul Farrelly – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Farrelly on 2015-11-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which sections of the Crime and Courts Act 2013 have not yet been implemented.

    Mike Penning

    Most of the Act has been implemented, but the sections which have not been commenced are listed below.

    Provision Not in Force

    s.26(1), (3)-(8)

    s.40 ss. 41 & 42 (in so far as they are ancillary to section 40)

    S.56 and Sch.22 (commenced in England and Wales only)

    Sch. 8 (11)

    Sch. 9 (62) (Repealed)

    Sch. 13 Part 4

    s.44 (only to the extent it enacts the following provisions in Sch. 16) Sch. 16, Part 4 (11-21)

    Sch. 19 (not commenced in Northern Ireland)

    Sch. 20 (1-15) (not commenced in Scotland)

    Sch.23
  • Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-12-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that people with serious mental health issues are receiving appropriate physical health care.

    Alistair Burt

    We are committed to ensuring that the physical health of people with serious mental health issues is treated in the same way as the rest of the population.

    The delivery of physical checks and interventions to individuals with a serious mental health problem who are in NHS commissioned inpatient settings is now incentivised via a national Commissioning for Quality and Innovation indicator. Any needs identified by these health checks are met with the necessary interventions or referral to another clinician for assessment diagnosis and treatment.

    With other initiatives undertaken by NHS England and its partners, which include making information accessible to the public on the availability of health checks and supporting the development and rollout of tools and guidance to improve physical health assessment in primary care, we will continue to increase access to the same health initiatives that benefit the general population. This will support improved health outcomes and reductions in unnecessary emergency and unplanned physical care for people with a serious mental health issue.

  • Tom Tugendhat – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Tom Tugendhat – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Tugendhat on 2016-01-27.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department has taken to ensure transparency of commission and other charges levied by financial advisers on individual pension plans.

    Harriett Baldwin

    Adviser remuneration is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Through the Retail Distribution Review (RDR), introduced at the end of 2012, the FCA has taken a number of steps to ensure that adviser remuneration on retail investment business is disclosed in advance of any services required. Product providers no longer have any influence over the remuneration received for advising on investments. Where commission remains on investments sold prior to the RDR, this will have been disclosed as required by the rules in force at the time the product was sold.

  • Phil Boswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Phil Boswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-02-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of (a) the effects on financial institutions with high energy exposure of the falling price of oil and (b) the effect of that falling price on businesses in the North Sea.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Chancellor set out the government’s view on the challenges facing the UK economy in a speech on 7 January. The transcript of the speech is available from www.gov.uk/government/speeches/chancellor-on-challenges-facing-uk-economy-in-2016. The Chancellor and other Ministers meet regularly with regulators and the Bank of England. In addition, the Bank of England’s Financial Stability Report sets out an analysis, which can be found here:

    http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/Pages/fsr/2015/dec.aspx

    The Financial Policy Committee’s (FPC) stress test results in December 2015 suggest that the major UK banks would be resilient to a sustained commodity price downturn.

    The UK now has a robust system of financial regulation, where the regulators have clear objectives and powers to deal with risks to the financial sector. The Government established the FPC to identify, monitor and address systemic risks to financial stability.

  • Danny Kinahan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Danny Kinahan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Danny Kinahan on 2016-03-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will take steps to tackle the lower expected offer rate to Asian, Black, Mixed and Other ethnic groups higher education applicants.

    Joseph Johnson

    My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has set a goal of increasing by 20% the number of BME students in higher education by 2020. Entry rates for 18 year olds in each ethnic group increased in 2015, reaching the highest recorded values for each group. Between 2009 and 2015, the entry rate for young people in the Black ethnic group increased by over 40 percent proportionally. The Government has introduced a number of policies, including those set out below, to achieve my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister’s goal.

    We recently announced that universities would be required to publish admissions and retention rate by gender, ethnic background and disadvantage. Greater transparency will expose where offer rates for students from the poorest and black and minority backgrounds are particularly low and help to encourage universities to take further action.

    In addition, UCAS are consulting on making applications to university name-blind from 2017 to make sure that everyone, no matter what their background, is treated equally.

    I have asked Universities UK to establish an expert advisory group on social mobility to provide further advice in this area.