Category: Speeches

  • Kelvin Hopkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Kelvin Hopkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kelvin Hopkins on 2016-03-16.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the judgment in Stagecoach Group PLC & Anor v Revenue and Customs [2016] UKFTT 120 (tc) (10 February 2016), what steps his Department has taken against KPMG for designing and marketing the tax avoidance scheme rejected by the court.

    Mr David Gauke

    It is not possible for HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) to provide details of any action taken in connection with these organisations.

    In the March 2015 Budget, the Government challenged the accountancy and tax professional bodies to improve how they deal with their members who promote tax avoidance schemes.

    The professional bodies have responded positively to this challenge and are working with HMRC to agree a new standard to which their members will need to adhere.

  • Maggie Throup – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Maggie Throup – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maggie Throup on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which areas have been chosen as test sites for the pre-exposure drug prophyaxis (PrEP); what selection criteria have been used to identify those test sites; and what measures his Department plans to use to assess the effectiveness of PrEP in the test sites over the next two years.

    Jane Ellison

    The planning of the process to select test sites, including timing and criteria for selection, will continue alongside NHS England’s review of its position on the commissioning of pre-exposure prophyaxis (PrEP).

  • Jeff Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Jeff Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeff Smith on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people under the age of 25 in (a) England, (b) Greater Manchester and (c) Manchester, Withington constituency are employed on zero-hours contracts.

    Mr Rob Wilson

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Julian Knight – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Julian Knight – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-07-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 24 May 2016 to Question 37407, when he plans to publish the new Tobacco Control Plan.

    Nicola Blackwood

    The Government remains committed to publishing a new tobacco control plan and Ministers will decide on a publication date shortly.

  • Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department plans to launch its consultation on biofuels; and whether that consultation will address the issues of indirect land use and level of the crop cap.

    Mr John Hayes

    We plan to consult later this year on changes to the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation including steps to provide more long term confidence for producers and to address indirect land use change with options to limit the contribution from crop based biofuels.

  • 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 2016-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what information her Department holds on the number of people who have undertaken full-time volunteering over the last (a) 12 months, (b) three years and (c) five years.

    Mr Rob Wilson

    DCMS does not hold this information.

    However, through the annual youth social action survey we do know that 42% of 10 to 20 year olds have participated in some form of social action in the past year. Full-time volunteering is one of many opportunities for young people to participate in meaningful social action.

  • Owen Thompson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Owen Thompson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Owen Thompson on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in what circumstances a judge could refuse to approve an interception warrant under clause 19(2) of the draft Investigatory Powers Bill.

    Mr John Hayes

    A Judicial Commissioner may refuse to approve any warrant that they believe does not meet the test set out by Judicial Review principles. Judicial Review principles are well established, tested and have been applied by the courts for a long time. The Judicial Commissioner will consider whether the Secretary of State’s decision was reasonable, lawful, made fairly, and whether it complies with the European Convention on Human Rights. The Judicial Commissioner’s consideration will include a review of the Secretary of State’s conclusions on necessity and proportionality. The Judicial Commissioner will have final say on whether a warrant can be issued.

  • Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-01-04.

    To ask the Prime Minister, what steps the Government has taken to meet the conditions set out in the motion passed by the House on 2 December 2015 on ISIL in Syria.

    Mr David Cameron

    I refer the right hon. Member to the oral statement made by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) on 16 December 2015, Official Report, column 1566.

  • 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 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, on which dates the relevant (a) regional schools commissioner and (b) chief executive of the local enterprise partnership have attended steering group meetings of the area reviews of post-16 education and training in (i) Birmingham and Solihull, (ii) Greater Manchester, (iii) Sheffield City Region, (iv) Tees Valley, (v) Sussex, (vi) Solent and (vii) West Yorkshire; and if she will make a statement

    Nick Boles

    There are a range of ways in which Regional Schools Commissioners (RSCs) and members of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) contribute to area reviews, for instance through the Area Review Advisory Group.

    All Wave 1 Area Reviews have held a number of local steering group meetings, and RSCs and LEPs are members. In terms of specific attendance, an RSC may attend in person, or may instead send a representative. The area review guidance published in September 2015 does indicate that the LEP should be a member of the local steering group, but it does not require a particular representative to attend. LEPs do not usually have chief executives.

    RSC and LEP representatives have attended various steering group meetings in Birmingham and Solihull, Greater Manchester, Sheffield City Region, Tees Valley, Sussex, Solent and West Yorkshire from September 2015 to the present.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-02-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 February 2016 to Question 26900, if he will request that Ofcom publish an assessment of the extent to which the indicative assessment of BT’s ducts in the report, Telecoms infrastructure access – sample survey of duct access, published in March 2009, was borne out in the subsequent rollout by BT of superfast broadband.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    It is a matter for Ofcom as the independent regulator to consider whether the benefits of conducting and publishing such an assessment are proportionate to the costs.

    On 25 February Ofcom published the initial conclusions of its Strategic Review of Digital Communications, including its strategy to promote large-scale roll-out of new ultrafast broadband networks.

    As part of that, Ofcom has said it will ask Openreach to provide a new database showing the physical location and characteristics of all of its ducts and poles, and to provide greatly improved systems and processes for access to them. This will allow competing operators to invest, plan and lay advanced networks. Ofcom will be working closely with industry to drive this forward over the coming months.