Category: Speeches

  • Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-03-02.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received on financial institutions’ plans to offer negative or zero rates of interest to savers.

    Harriett Baldwin

    HM Treasury has not received any representations on financial institutions’ plans to offer negative or zero rates of interest to savers.

    The levels of interest being paid to savers and their disclosure was explored as part of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) Cash Savings Market Study report, which was published in January 2015. The report found that competition in the cash savings market was not working well for many consumers and, in response, the FCA has consulted on and will subsequently be introducing new rules from 1 December 2016 designed to both improve competition and the information savers receive. As part of these new rules, firms will need to make it clear to consumers what interest rate they are getting for their account.

  • Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts on 2016-03-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many National Insurance numbers were in use at the end of each of the last five years for which records are available.

    Lord Freud

    The information requested is not available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

  • 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 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the membership is of his Department’s Board Investment and Commercial Sub Committee.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Department’s Board Investment and Commercial Sub-Committee is chaired by the Permanent Secretary. Its membership consists of: the Directors General, the Directors for Corporate Finance, Group Finance, Analysis & Strategy, Group Commercial Services, and Group Assurance; the Department’s Commercial Adviser; the Director of Legal; and the Lead Non-Executive Board Member. Other Non-Executive Board Members attend by invitation.

  • Angela Crawley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Angela Crawley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angela Crawley on 2016-06-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many women who claimed asylum on the grounds of sexual violence in their home country are in immigration detention.

    James Brokenshire

    Information on the reasons for a claim for asylum is not readily accessible from central statistical records and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost through a manual search of individual case files.

  • Lord West of Spithead – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord West of Spithead – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2016-09-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the planned out-of-service date for HMS Ocean, and how her landing platform helicopter capabilities will be provided prior to the entry into service of HMS Prince of Wales.

    Earl Howe

    HMS OCEAN entered service in 1998 with an expected in service life of 20 years and she will decommission in 2018. The Strategic Defence Security Review 2015 made provision to augment the Queen Elizabeth Class carriers and maximise their ability to support amphibious operations. Prior to the carriers being brought into service, other Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships will provide support to amphibious operations.

  • Lisa Cameron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Lisa Cameron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lisa Cameron on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of granting additional funding for the National Engineering Laboratory (NEL) for investment in the national measurement infrastructure; and what assessment he has made of the extent of the contribution which the NEL makes in that area.

    Margot James

    The Government fully appreciates the importance of measurement science to the UK’s economic prosperity and quality of life and will continue to deliver a National Measurement System on behalf of Government through the infrastructure of measurement laboratories in the UK.

    The UK Measurement Strategy will be published shortly, building on the previous Strategy published in 2011, to focus on key areas that underpin Government priorities over the coming five years. The balance between scientific programmes in which the Government invests will be determined by this strategy.

  • Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 18 December 2014 to Question 219424, what financial support the Government has (a) provided since 1 January 2015 and (b) budgeted to provide in the future to support local governance in opposition-controlled areas.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    We do not have figures for spend since the start of the calendar year, but the UK has delivered over £85m in non-humanitarian support to Syria, Jordan and Lebanon since the start of the crisis in 2011. A significant amount of this has supported work in moderate opposition-controlled areas, helping to save lives, bolster civil society, build resilience against extremists, promote human rights and accountability, deliver basic governance and help lay the foundations for a more peaceful and inclusive future for Syria.

    The UK is committed to helping the Syrian people, and will continue its non-humanitarian support next financial year, although a final budget has not yet been allocated.

  • Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether adult children will be included in the vulnerable persons relocation scheme along with their younger siblings and parents.

    Richard Harrington

    We work closely with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to identify cases that they deem in need of resettlement according to agreed vulnerability criteria for the Syrian Resettlement Scheme. This can include families where adult children form part of the family unit where the UNHCR deem resettlement is appropriate for the entire family group.

  • Alison McGovern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Alison McGovern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison McGovern on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans he has to publish written guidlines for British drone strikes.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    Unmanned drones are no different from any other weapon system and subject to the same legal and other frameworks. We have no plans to publish any guidelines. I refer the hon. Member to the evidence provided by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence (Michael Fallon) on 16 December 2015 to the Joint Committee on Human Rights.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-02-05.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his Department’s spending data for October 2014, for what reasons IPSOS Mori was engaged on the business case for Efficiency and Reform Group fraud, error and debt.

    Matthew Hancock

    Ipsos MORI were commissioned by the Grants Efficiency Programme to conduct research to help us to further understand the make-up of the complex grants landscape across 17 central government departments. The study consisted of 81 interviews, which investigated a range of randomly selected grants. Interviews were held with a cross-section of Grant Managers between 15th July and 12th September 2014.

    The qualitative and quantitative findings from this research were used to help develop a baseline for calculating the benefits of various proposed interventions aimed at improving the administration of government grants, which were included in The Grants Efficiency Programme’s outline business case. The business case received support from ministers across government and the Grants Efficiency Programme is working with departments to deliver better information and to increase capability, in relation to grants, by the Spring.