Category: Speeches

  • Antoinette Sandbach – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Antoinette Sandbach – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Antoinette Sandbach on 2016-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which Natura 2000 sites have been identified as being within 10 miles of the proposed Phase 2 route of High Speed Two.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The following Natura 2000 sites within 10 miles of the proposed Phase 2 Route (Special Protection Areas (SPAs) and Special Areas of Conservation (SACs)) have been identified:

    1 SPA site

    17 SAC sites

    SPA Name

    Peak District Moors

    SAC Name

    Birklands & Bilhaugh

    Cannock Chase

    Cannock Extension Canal

    Denby Grange Colliery Ponds

    Ensor’s Pool

    Kirk Deighton

    Manchester Mosses

    Mottey Meadows

    Oak Mere

    Pasturefields Salt Marsh

    Peak District Dales

    River Mease

    Rixton Clay Pits

    Rochdale Canal

    Skipwith Common

    South Pennine Moors

    West Midlands Mosses

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeff Smith on 2016-05-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many new businesses have been set up in Manchester, Withington constituency since May 2010.

    Anna Soubry

    There is no single data source that comprehensively measures all business start-ups within the UK.

    However, ONS has published statistics showing that there were 2,210 businesses newly registered for VAT or PAYE in the Manchester, Withington constituency between 2010 and 2014. Some newly registered businesses will have been trading for a number of years and other active businesses will not be covered because they are operating below the VAT and PAYE registration thresholds.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when negotiations with EU member states on the future of EU citizens in the UK will begin.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    When the Prime Minister decides to trigger the formal process for the UK’s departure from the EU, the issue of the future status of EU nationals in the UK will form part of those negotiations.

  • Neil Parish – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Neil Parish – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Neil Parish on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which local authorities have breached legal air quality limits in the last year.

    Dr Thérèse Coffey

    Defra uses both monitoring and modelling to assess air quality in the UK. Currently, 156 monitoring stations in the national network report near-real-time data on five key pollutants: particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), sulphur dioxide (SO2), ozone (O3) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). Information about these sites and modelled data is available on Defra’s UK-Air website.

    Latest compliance data show that the UK is meeting the EU limit values for all pollutants covered by the European air quality Directives other than those for NO2.

    That is why in December last year, the Government published the national air quality plan for reducing NO2 concentrations through a new programme of Clean Air Zones in five cities in England, including Leeds, Nottingham and Southampton, as well as Birmingham and Derby, along with the Ultra-Low Emission Zone in London. The plan combines targeted local and national measures and continued investment in clean technologies.

    The councils which were observed to have exceedances of the annual mean NO2 limit value in 2015 are in the attached table.

  • Karin Smyth – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Karin Smyth – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karin Smyth on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the consistency with domestic Ethiopian and international law on the right to a fair trial of the sentences imposed on Andargachew Tsege by the Ethiopian authorities in 2009 and 2011.

    James Duddridge

    The Government remains deeply concerned by the continued detention of Mr Andargachew Tsege. Extensive Ministerial lobbying resulted in Mr Tsege’s transfer to a normal federal prison in July. The Prime Minister wrote to the Ethiopian Prime Minister on 17 August welcoming this move, emphasising that this should allow regular consular access, and visits by Mr Tsege’s family. The release of video footage of Mr Tsege in July 2014 and January 2015 was not raised in the letter. We continue to press the Ethiopian government for regular consular access, for improvements to Mr Tsege’s welfare and to provide a legal process through which Mr Tsege can challenge his detention, including its consistency with domestic and international law. My Rt Hon Friend, the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Philip Hammond MP), Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, has raised this case on 17 separate occasions with the Ethiopians.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Jim Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department holds on the number of British military personnel embedded with foreign armed forces; and if he will make a statement.

    Michael Fallon

    Given the routine nature of embedding, this information has not been coordinated centrally. The Ministry of Defence is in the process of compiling data on UK personnel embedded with other nations’ armed forces and deployed on operations, as well as those who work on operations in deployed coalition or single nation headquarters roles. I intend to update the House after this process is complete.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department takes to promote take-up of travel insurance by UK citizens travelling abroad.

    James Duddridge

    Encouraging British nationals intending to travel overseas to take out adequate insurance for their trip remains a crucial part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s ‘Know Before You Go’ communications campaign. We continue to run specific campaigns on this issue and to disseminate insurance messaging in our broader travel safety activity. We launched an insurance campaign as recently as 7 January, ahead of ‘Sunshine Saturday’ on 9 January, a travel industry initiative during which millions of people were expected to book a holiday abroad in 2016. Last year we issued proactive messaging on insurance in May, July and August, making use of social, print, online and other online media as well as our network of partners from, and with an interest in, the travel industry. Harnessing the influence of these partner organisations will continue to help us reach travellers with insurance messaging, which is why I urged our ‘Know Before You Go’ partners to continue working with us on this issue during an event I hosted at the FCO in December 2015.

  • Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2016-02-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many passengers submitted Delay/Repay claims to Southern Railway in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13, (d) 2013-14 and (e) 2014-15.

    Claire Perry

    The Department does not hold the information requested. However, we will continue to push operators to ensure passengers are aware of compensation arrangements and claim where entitled to do so under the Delay/Repay scheme as set out on the Southern’s website: https://www.southernrailway.com/your-journey/customer-services/delay-repay/delay-repay-form.

    “

  • Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hoey on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the merits of staffing (a) railway stations and (b) trains.

    Claire Perry

    The safety of passengers and rail users is paramount on the railway and the Department for Transport would never do anything to put passengers at risk.

    We do regulate Ticket Office opening times through the Ticketing and Settlement Agreement, but staffing levels beyond this are a matter for the operators as we believe that they are best placed to determine how to meet the needs of their passengers.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much funding his Department received from the European Social Fund (a) between 2007 and 2014 and (b) from 2014 to the last month for which data is available.

    Mr Julian Brazier

    None.