Category: Speeches

  • Jonathan Lord – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Jonathan Lord – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Lord on 2016-02-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of implementing the recommendations of Surrey County Council’s Surrey Rail Strategy: Crossrail 2 Assessment Final Report, relating to the extension of Crossrail 2 to Woking.

    Claire Perry

    No decisions on either further government investment in Crossrail 2 or the final route for Crossrail 2 have been made. The National Infrastructure Commission has been asked to provide advice to the government by Budget 2016 on the best approach to large-scale investment in London’s transport infrastructure and this will include consideration of Crossrail 2.

    Their advice will help inform decisions on any next steps for the scheme and therefore, prior to their advice, the Secretary of State is not in a position to make an assessment on the potential merits of an extension of Crossrail 2 to Woking.

    However, Transport for London and Network Rail analysis shows that Crossrail 2 would release capacity for additional services on the South West Main Line into Waterloo. This would mean that destinations across the region, including Woking and other towns and cities not on the proposed route, would benefit from more frequent and reliable services into London.

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many cycle lanes have been created in each local authority area in each year since 2010.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Department for Transport does not centrally hold figures for how many bicycle lanes have been constructed, as this is a matter for local areas. The Department has provided funding to local authorities to implement cycling schemes for instance through the Cycling Ambition Grants, Local Sustainable Transport Fund, Local Growth Fund and Integrated Transport Block.

  • Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what evidence her Department holds on the relationship between the A-level grades achieved by prospective teachers and their later performance in the classroom.

    Nick Gibb

    Evidence, including a seminal McKinsey study from 2007 (How the world’s best-performing schools come out on top), shows that teacher quality and impact cannot be predicted by a single factor such as A-Level grades, but result from a complex combination of factors including academic achievement combined with characteristics and attributes such as communication skills, willingness to learn and motivation to teach.

    The Teachers’ Standards, developed by a group of leading teachers and heads, clearly define the core elements of effective teaching – including strong subject knowledge and the promotion of scholarship, as well as skills such as classroom management. All new teachers must demonstrate that they are meeting the standards at the end of their initial training.

    It is important that providers of initial teacher training are able to select and recruit candidates on the basis of their potential and their academic achievement to date; this is why we are giving schools much greater say in recruiting and training candidates who can be successful in the classroom. This year, over half of all postgraduate trainees are coming through school-led routes.

  • Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2016-04-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to prohibit individuals involved in the death of Sergei Magnitsky from entering the UK and using its financial system; and if she will make a statement.

    James Brokenshire

    The Government already has the power to deny entry to individuals from the UK where their presence is not considered conducive to the public good, and separately, to freeze individuals’ UK assets provided that certain conditions are met.

  • Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-06-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of whether the Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Services had a role in the recent deaths of student protestors.

    James Duddridge

    We are deeply concerned by the deaths of two students during recent protests, including allegations of the National Intelligence and Security Service’s involvement. We have raised our concerns with the Government of Sudan and believe that a full and transparent investigation should be undertaken to ensure those responsible are held to account.

  • Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he and his Department have had with the Indian government on recent violence in Kashmir.

    Alok Sharma

    I remain very concerned by reports of violence and offer my condolences to the victims and their families. The United Kingdom abides by its commitments under international law and expects all countries to comply with their international legal obligations. Our High Commission in Delhi is monitoring the situation closely and we have changed our travel advice. The long standing position of the UK is that it is for India and Pakistan to find a lasting resolution to the situation in Kashmir, taking into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people. It is not for the UK to prescribe a solution or to act as a mediator.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the amount of profit made from the NHS by companies that own both a pharmaceutical wholesaler and a large multiple pharmacy chain in their (a) wholesale business and (b) pharmacies in each of the last five years; and what the permitted profit margins are in both parts of those businesses.

    David Mowat

    The Department has not made such an estimate.

  • Karl McCartney – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Karl McCartney – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl McCartney on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the quality of the evidence presented by the Association of British Insurers on the continuing increases to motor insurance premiums being a result of fraudulent personal injury claims; and if he will make a statement.

    Dominic Raab

    The Government is concerned about the incidence of fraudulent personal injury claims and the costs that they cause. The Insurance Fraud Taskforce is considering the evidence from a range of stakeholders, including the ABI, as part of its remit to make recommendations to tackle insurance fraud more generally.

  • Liam Fox – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Liam Fox – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liam Fox on 2015-12-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the payment window for the single farm payment and basic payment will open.

    George Eustice

    The payment window for the Basic Payment Scheme 2015 runs between 1st December 2015 and 30th June 2016.

    We received around 88,000 Basic Payment Scheme applications for 2015. On the 1st December, the opening of the Basic Payment Scheme 2015 payment window, we paid around 33,000 claims. This means that, as a proportion, around 62% of claims are still being processed.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of nitrogen dioxide pollution in the UK is caused by emissions from private cars.

    Rory Stewart

    We assess emissions in terms of nitrogen oxides (NOx) rather than nitrogen dioxide (NO2) because the proportion of NO2 varies significantly across vehicle types. Passenger cars (including both petrol and diesel vehicles) contribute 29% of the total emissions of NOx in the UK. Passenger cars contribute 45% of NOX emissions from road transport.