Category: Speeches

  • Lord Aberdare – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Aberdare – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Aberdare on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made in developing the IT system to support the delivery of the Digital Apprenticeship Voucher, and what plans they have for testing and piloting that scheme.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The digital apprenticeship service is being built by the Skills Funding Agency in accordance with Cabinet Office best practice.

    To ensure that the service is focused on employer and training provider needs we are performing extensive user research. The service will build on insights gathered from over 2000 employers and around 400 training providers. To make sure that the service is ready for the levy in April 2017, we plan to launch a substantial pilot with employers and providers later this year.

    Further details on the apprenticeship levy and the digital apprenticeship service are available in the guide for employers which was published in April: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apprenticeship-levy-how-it-will-work

    “

  • Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-07-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to his Department’s distributed ledger technology benefits payments trial, whether the services being delivered by that trial have passed the Government Digital Service assessment process; and when he expects the outcome of that trial to be published.

    Damian Hinds

    The DWP works continuously with industry partners to identify and test new innovations that could save taxpayer money, safeguard information and better protect payments to customers.

    The DWP is undertaking some small scale research involving blockchain technology which is expected to last 3-6 months with the results available in the last quarter of 2016. It uses a private permissioned distributed ledger to allow participants to store their transactions, including payments from DWP. Those transactions can then be viewed securely on a mobile application so that they can, if they wish, monitor and allocate their spending into categories, check their available balance and plan future spending. There are currently about 12 people in the trial which we expect to increase to around 24 people by the close.

    The participants in the trial have complete control over their data and how it is used; the government does not receive or see any of that data. The DWP takes privacy and security extremely seriously and this will form part of the learning from the trial.

  • Helen Goodman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Helen Goodman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will publish an estimate of the UK share of EU tariff rate quotas on agricultural products in (a) each of the last three financial years, (b) 2016-17 and (c) each of the next three years.

    George Eustice

    There is as yet no single agreed method to estimate the UK’s share. The Government is now preparing to negotiate our exit from the EU. Defra is working with the Department for International Trade and the Department for Exiting the EU on the UK’s withdrawal and future trade relationship. As part of this we will have to separate the UK schedules for goods and services at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) from those of the EU. One of the tasks ahead is to examine the UK’s use of tariff rate quotas held by the EU. Defra is in close co-operation with other Government Departments and we will pursue this task in consultation with other WTO Members.

    Until we leave the EU current arrangements, including agreements relating to tariff rate quotas, are still in place.

  • Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-11-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how the work conducted in 2009 on counter-terrorism protective security in crowded places has been carried forward, and whether there is an established doctrine or policy for ensuring the safety of such places.

    Lord Bates

    The Government put in place a programme under CONTEST, the UK’s counter-terrorism strategy, to improve protective security and preparedness at a range of sites by ensuring businesses have access to high quality protective security advice, including through police specialist Counter Terrorism Security Advisors (CTSAs) who operate across the whole of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. In 2014 the programme was refreshed with an enhanced site assessment process and an improved partnership approach with business.

    CTSAs are engaged at sites across the country to give protective security advice, to train staff in Counter Terrorism awareness, and to encourage managers to develop response plans to a range of threats. CTSA advice is based on a range of protective security improvement and preparedness measures, and is designed to be appropriate and proportionate and wherever possible cost-effective. The National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) has also published on its website protective security advice and guidance for owners and operators of different types of businesses to identify key risks and consider what steps they should take.

  • Seema Malhotra – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Seema Malhotra – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Seema Malhotra on 2015-12-15.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, which external organisations have contributed to his Department’s review on business rates.

    Mr David Gauke

    The Government has held a range meetings with stakeholders and received a large number of submissions in response to the business rates review. The review will be fiscally neutral and will report at Budget 2016.

  • 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 2016-01-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of people who were at any time included in the universal credit in-work conditionality pilot are no longer receiving any element of that credit.

    Priti Patel

    National roll-out of the In-Work Progression Randomised Control Trial commenced in December 2015 and is likely to be completed in summer 2016. We are unable to provide the information requested at this early stage.

  • Lord Pearson of Rannoch – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Lord Pearson of Rannoch – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Pearson of Rannoch on 2016-02-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the risk that their policy of further localism might lead to local authorities with high Muslim populations adopting Sharia law, if current trends in birth rate continue.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    This is not viewed as a risk by the Government. Localism does not mean that national law can be contravened, nor does it allow the creation of local court systems. Legislation remains the responsibility of Parliament, not local authorities.

  • Alec Shelbrooke – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Alec Shelbrooke – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alec Shelbrooke on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps her Department is taking to prevent electricity shortages in the winter of 2016-17.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The UK will not face a power shortage in winter 2016/17. National Grid has the right tools they need to manage the system and will ensure that they continue to do so.

    National Grid has already procured 3.6GW of reserve capacity for next winter and, in January, the Capacity Market Transitional Arrangements auction bought 800MW of demand side response capacity for winter 16/17 which will also help secure the system. In addition, National Grid has the option to procure further demand side balancing reserve for 2016/17.

  • Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2016-04-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what her Department’s definition is of abated coal-fired electricity generation; and if she will make a statement.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Any new coal plant must demonstrate carbon capture and storage on at least 300 MW of its proposed generating capacity and comply with the Emissions Performance Standard. The Department will be launching a consultation on closing unabated coal-fired power stations and will ask for views on what measures might be suitable for existing coal.

  • Lord Chidgey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Chidgey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Chidgey on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Home Office has commissioned any research into migration to the EU from Horn of Africa nations, in line with the UK’s role as the Chair of the Khartoum Process.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    As Chair of the Khartoum Process, the UK supports enhanced work in the Horn of Africa, working with EU and African partners to deliver concrete actions to combat people smuggling and human trafficking. Helping the countries of the Horn of Africa cope with migratory flows and tackling the root causes of migration is firmly in the UK’s interests, but we remain mindful of the broader humanitarian and political concerns regarding countries in that region and our position on that point has not changed.

    The Home Office conducted research in the Horn of Africa to understand drivers of irregular migration to Europe and the UK, in line with our work under the Khartoum Process.